In a cantilever beam, what stresses occur beyond its support points?

In a cantilever beam, when a load is applied at the free end, the stresses that develop are directly related to how the beam reacts to that load. The top side of the beam experiences compression while the bottom side experiences tension.

When the beam is subjected to bending, the material on the side where the bending moment is trying to compress the beam will be in compression, which is the top side in this situation. Conversely, the side experiencing tensile forces, which is the bottom side, is being pulled apart by the bending action.

Thus, when analyzing a cantilever beam subjected to a downward load at its end, the top of the beam—closest to the fixed support—will traditionally be under compression, and the bottom will be under tension. This fundamental behavior is critical in understanding the design and failure mechanisms of structural elements under various loads.