Genres and Subgenres Classifying literature
Genres: Type Fiction: creative or imaginative writing; stories. Nonfiction: writing that is factual and uses examples. Folklore: stories once passed down orally. *Usually will say retold by or adapted by Dramas: plays or scripts. Poetry: writing concerned with the beauty of language.
Mystery/ Thriller Fiction Subgenres Fiction Horror Realistic Fiction Science Fiction Humor Adventure Fantasy Historical Fiction
Realistic Fiction: stories that could be true, but aren t. Sounds possible- but never happened. Science Fiction: has aliens and space elements, advanced technology, or is set in the future. Historical Fiction: a made up story set around a real event or person from history. Fantasy: has monsters, magic, or super powers.
Mystery/Thriller: a suspenseful story about a puzzling event that is not explained until the end. Horror: a story that usually involves a setting in a place where people are vulnerable (like at night in the dark forest); there is a good against evil scenario where people meet the supernatural, and the killer is usually a demon, ghost, monster, or masked person. Adventure: a story where the main character goes on an adventure himself/herself or the main character leads other characters on an adventure where some external and internal conflicts are resolved at the end. Humor: a story written to deliberately make the reader laugh.
Nonfiction Subgenres Informational Writing Persuasive Writing essays Nonfiction speeches lectures newspaper and magazine articles expository manuals biography Literary autobiography essays speeches memoir diary
Informational Writing: provides facts or information. Autobiography: one s life story written by oneself; narrative non-fiction. auto = self bio = life graph= write Biography: one s life story written by someone else. Persuasive Writing: meant to influence the reader; creates an argument.
Analysis Essay Subgenres Compare/ Contrast Essay Expository Reflective Persuasive Descriptive Narrative
expository essay: explains about a subject or topic. persuasive essay: meant to influence the reader; creates an argument. descriptive essay: describe something object, person, place, experience, emotion, situation, etc; create a written account of a particular experience. narrative essay: anecdotal, experiential, and personal; expressive, creative, and often moving. reflective essay: examines experiences in life; explores change, development, or growth analytical: analyze, examine and interpret such things as an event, book, poem, play or other work of art; analyze: explain parts compare & contrast: are multi-paragraph compositions that explain ways in which two (or occasionally more) subjects are similar and different.
Folklore Subgenres (technically folklore is part of fiction because it s stories, but for clarification it s being separated) Folklore Fable Fairy Tale Tall Tale Legend Myth
Fable: short story with talking animals & a moral. Moral: lesson of the story (clearly stated). Myth: has gods & goddesses; may account for the creation of something. Tall Tale: Funny story set in the Wild West; main character s size or skill exaggerated. Fairy Tale: has magic and/or talking animals. Legend: a story that might be true, but is exaggerated; possibly based on a real person/thing. May have done a good deed; may be viewed as a hero.
Fairytales & Fantasies Both have monsters, magic, or talking animals. What s the difference? Not much; the ideas overlap quite often. Fairytales were part of the oral tradition. Fairytales often start Once Upon a Time, end happily ever after. Both: Fiction both Folklores Disney- older stories- true fairytales include traditional elements Disney- new stories- fantasy (with fairytale characteristics) YEARS TO COME could transition to fairy tales due to the retelling maybe
Drama Subgenres Drama Comedy Tragedy
play or a script (including TV) Comedy: has a happy ending. Tragedy: ends in death and sadness.
Poetry Subgenres Poetry Lyrical many others Narrative Epic
Lyrical- expresses personal or emotional feelings. Is traditionally in present tense. Has specific rhyming schemes. Often, but not always, set to music or a beat. Narrative- tells a story. Uses the voices of a narrator and characters. Usually written in metered verse. Poems may be short or long. The story may be complex and is usually dramatic. Epic- (from the Ancient Greek adjective ἐπικός (epikos), from ἔπος (epos) "word, story, poem") is a lengthy narrative poem. Has a serious subject with a heroic and events significant to a culture or nation.
Tips for Identifying 1. Find the main genre first 2. Look for details that reveal the subgenre. 3. It can be more than one subgenre but you cannot cross genres and subgenres. ex: non-fiction : fable- not possible folklore : fairy tale & fable- possible fiction : realistic, mystery, & horror- possible