LITERARY GENRES
Definitions and characteristics
ALL FICTION
DRAMA
Stories composed in verse or prose, usually for
theatrical performance, where conflicts and emotion
are expressed through dialogue and action.
There are different types: tragedy, comedy,
tragicomedy….
FABLE
A short tale used to teach a moral lesson, often
with animals as characters, about recognizing and
overcoming their foibles; to critique authority figures
in humorous and anonymous ways; to poke fun.
The story is very brief, the main characters are
usually animals and are characterized quickly with a
few broad strokes.
FAIRY TALE
A fairy tale is a fictional story that may feature
folkloric characters (such as fairies, goblins, elves,
trolls, witches, giants, and talking animals) and
enchantments, often involving a far-fetched
sequence of events.
They have their roots in the oral tradition.
Fairy tales with very similar plots, characters, and
motifs are found spread across many different
cultures.
FANTASY
The definition of this fictional genre could be
described as something that contains rudiments that
are not realistic, such as magical powers, talking
animals, etc.
It represents that which is impossible
(unexplained) and outside the parameters of our
known, reality. Make-believe is what this genre is
all about.
FICTION
Narrative literary works whose content is
produced by the imagination and is not necessarily
based on fact.
There is also fiction in verse which are full-length
novels with plot, subplot(s), theme(s), major and
minor characters, in which the narrative is
presented in (usually blank) verse form.
FOLKLORE
The songs, stories, myths, and proverbs of a people
or "folk" as handed down by word of mouth.
HORROR
Fiction in which events evoke a feeling of dread in
both the characters and the reader.
It creates an eerie and frightening atmosphere.
Horror can be either supernatural or non-
supernatural.
The genre has ancient origins which were
reformulated in the eighteenth century as Gothic
horror, with publication of the Castle of Otranto
(1764) by Horace Walpole.
SATIRES
A text that uses irony, sarcasm, and ridiculeto expose and
make fun of human follyand vice, to critique the status quo,
to make fun of others and the self, and to offer renewed
alternatives and possibilities for being different.
Something is being made fun of, irony is being used, there
is a tone of mockery or derision, perhaps the author seems
to be supporting a point of view that you cannot expect her
to seriously support.
LEGEND
It is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and
listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain
qualities that give the tale verisimilitude.
Legend, for its active and passive participants includes no happenings
that are outside the realm of "possibility", defined by a highly flexible
set of parameters, which may include miracles that are perceived as
actually having happened, within the specific tradition of indoctrination
where the legend arises, and within which it may be transformed over
time, in order to keep it fresh and vital, and realistic.
MYSTERY
A subgenre of narrative fiction; often thought of as a detective
story.
Usually involves a mysterious death or a crime to be solved. In a
closed circle of suspects, each suspect must have a credible
motive and a reasonable opportunity for committing the crime.
The central character must be a detective who eventually solves
the mystery by logical deduction from facts fairly presented to the
reader. This classic structure is the basis for hundreds of
variations on the form.
MYTHOLOGY
Legend or traditional narrative, often based in part
on historical events, that reveals human behavior
and natural phenomena by its symbolism; often
pertaining to the actions of the gods.
POETRY
Verse and rhythmic writing with imagery that creates emotional responses.
Poetry uses forms and conventions to suggest differential interpretation to
words, or to evoke emotive responses. Devices such as assonance,
alliteration, onomatopoeia and rhythm are sometimes used to achieve
musical or incantatory effects. The use of ambiguity, symbolism, irony and
other stylistic elements of poetic diction often leaves a poem open to
multiple interpretations.
Similarly, metaphor, simile and metonymy create a resonance between
otherwise disparate images—a layering of meanings, forming connections
previously not perceived.
ALL NON-FICTION
(AUTO)BIOGRAPHY
A subgenre of narrative nonfiction/historical nonfiction.
Presents the facts about an individual's life and makes an
attempt to interpret those facts, explaining the person's
feelings and motivations.
Good biographers use many research tools to gather and
synthesize information about their subject, including the
person’s words, actions, journals, reactions, related books,
interviews with friends…
NONFICTION
It is the form of any narrative, account, or other
communicative work whose assertions and
descriptions are understood to be factual.
This presentation may be accurate or not—that is,
it can give either a true or a false account of the
subject in question—however, it is generally
assumed that authors of such accounts believe them
to be truthful at the time of their composition or, at
least, pose them to their audience as historically or
empirically true.
SPEECH
The process of presenting or comprehending a reasoned
case. to inquire into problems and possible solutions, to
persuade or convince others to change belief or take action,
to try and get one’s way!
There is a need or desire for something new or for
something to change is expressed.
This assertion is supported through the use of evidence and
warrants explaining how the evidence leads to this claim.