Genre: a distinctive category

of literary composition

Literature Genre: marked by

distinctive style, form and content.

One is just right for YOU!

5 Main Genres

NON-FICTION: real, factual, deals

with actual people, places, and events

FICTION: unreal, not true, not factual,

a made up story

FOLKLORE: stories once passed

down orally

DRAMA: a play or script

POETRY: writing concerned with the

beauty of language—economy of

words

Drama Fiction Poetry Folklore Nonfiction

Tragedy

Comedy Realistic

Fiction

Fable

Historical

Fiction

Fantasy

Myth

Science

Fiction

Tall Tale

Legend

Fairy Tale

Biography

Autobiography

Persuasive

Writing

Informational

Writing

Autobiography

LATIN ROOT: auto = self

Form of nonfiction (true)

Story of a real person’s life

Graphe means to write

Written by the person the story is about

Author does not need to do research

Author shares how he/she feels and what he/she thinks

When genre has blurred lines:

MEMOIR: Technically, memoir is non-fiction. It differes from

autobiography in that it covers a small period in the

author’s life; not meant to be comprehensive. Some of the

details may be fabricated or “memory”—thus, there is a

fictional aspect to a memoir.

Biography

LATIN ROOT: bio = life

Form of nonfiction (true)

Story of a real person’s life

Graphe means to write

Written by a person who is not the main person in the story

Author needs to do research

Author shares how he/she feels and what he/she thinks

Realistic Fiction

Form of fiction (not true)

Accurately reflects life as it could be lived

today

Everything in the story could happen to real

people living in our natural physical world

The characters have normal human

characteristics

Story may be set in real places, but the

story is NOT based on history

Historical Fiction

Form of fiction (not true)

Based on historical events

Authentic settings

Characters portrayed in realistic

manner

Some characters may be actual

people from history, but the story is

fictional

Artistic mix of fiction and historical fact

Science Fiction

Form of fiction (not true)

Contains some sort of scientific element, such as

Outer space

Medicine

Technology

Within the realm of possibility

Characters have some believable traits/qualities

Fantasy

Form of fiction (not true)

Contains one or more of the following:

supernatural occurrences

characters with magical powers

things with magical powers

animals with human characteristics

real people in fantastic places

fantastic creatures or characters in real situations

High Fantasy

Form of fiction (not real)

Good vs. evil (supernatural/evil forces)

Story written in a series of books/ volumes

Coming- of- age themes

Include fantastical elements, such as: Elves and dwarves

Magic

Wizards

Invented languages

quests

FOR ENRICHMENT PURPOSES:

Mystery

Form of fiction (not true)

Story revolves around a puzzle/problem

Characters deal with the solution to a

puzzle/problem, such as

finding a missing item/person

unraveling a secret

rationalize an event that is not explained

Contains clues/hints that help the

characters and readers solve the

puzzle/problem

Folktales

Form of fiction (not true)

Story that teaches a lesson

Contain the beliefs and customs of a

region or country

Original story is modified to make it

more interesting or more humorous

Present larger-than-life characters

and very unusual happenings

Fables

Form of fiction (not true)

Type of folktale

Ends in a moral or lesson

Characters are animals that talk and

act like humans

A character usually represents a

single human characteristic, such as

a fox being symbolic of a trickster

Legend

Form of fiction (not true)

Stories written about a real life hero and his/her mighty deeds

Mix of fiction and historical facts that have been creatively altered to encourage moral conduct and right choices

Leaves questions/wonder in the reader’s minds (Did Mike Fink really wrestle a grizzly bear?)

Myths

Form of fiction (not true)

Pertains to the actions of the gods

and/or goddesses

Characters are super-natural beings

with human emotions and qualities

Plot may involve interplay between

worlds (this world and

previous/original world)

“Classics”

Fiction, typically novels but can be dramas, poems, or even essays

What makes a classic? Timelessness: enjoyed by readers from generation to generation

Deals with universal themes and experiences that relate to readers, such as

love conquers all

good vs. evil

rags to riches

Communicates ideas across cultures

Unforgettable characters

DRAMAS

Stories written in script form.

DRAMA Subgenres:

Comedy: has a happy ending

Tragedy: ends in death/sadness

Tragicomedy: mixture of both

Poetry

Imaginative literature

Timelessness: enjoyed by readers from generation to generation

Deals with universal themes and experiences that relate to readers

Communicates ideas across cultures

Unforgettable lines

MANY, many subgenres in poetry. We WILL get them (i.e., sonnet, villanelle, ode, etc.) later in the year.

Let’s Practice What We Know

A. Fiction

B. Non-Fiction

#1 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

“Dogs and Cats” by Bob Brady

A five paragraph essay where the student Bob Brady compares and contrasts dogs and cats. He provides a lot of information about both.

Write the genre and subgenre on your paper.

#2 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

Your Science Textbook

Your science textbook contains much

of the human knowledge of Earth and the

universe.

Write the genre and subgenre on your

paper.

#3 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

In My Own Words by Eva Perón

Eva Perón writes the story of her life

from childhood to her rise in political power

in Argentina.

Write the genre and subgenre on your paper

#4 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

They Came from the Sun by Tom Mitchell

The story of a race of aliens that come

to enslave the residents of Earth with their

advanced weaponry. Only one teacher

can stop them, but is it too late?

Write the genre and subgenre on your

paper.

#5 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

“The Ant & The Grasshopper” Adapted by

Chad Peplum

The really short story of an Ant who works

hard all summer to prepare for winter and a

Grasshopper who just plays. Winter

comes and the Grasshopper freezes to

death. The moral is “prepare today for

tomorrow’s needs.”

#6 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

The Watsons Go to Birmingham by

Christopher Paul Curtis

It is the fictional story of an African

American family living in Flint, Michigan

who go to their grandmother's home in

Birmingham, Alabama in the year 1963.

The story is told around the 1963 16th

Street Baptist Church bombing in

Birmingham, an actual event in history.

#7 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

“Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind” retold

by Tom Cranes

Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind was the

toughest girl in the wild West. Right when

she was born, she looked up and said,

"Hello! I'm Sally Ann Thunder Ann

Whirlwind! And I am amazing!" She once

made a lasso out of live rattlesnakes, and

then she caught a tornado with that lasso.

#8 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

“Going, Going ... Green!” By Angela Gaimari

In this essay, Gaimari tries to convince people to do small things to help the environment. She gives readers many suggestions on how to live more eco-friendly and asks readers to make the change.

#9 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

by J.K. Rowling

The first book in the Harry Potter series.

Harry goes to wizard school and becomes

a Gryffindor. He learns to play quidditch, a

soccer like game played on flying

broomsticks, and he fights an evil within

the school with his newfound magic

powers.

#10 GENRE? SUBGENRE?

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

In his first year of middle school, the main

character Greg Heffley deals with “cooties,”

learning to wrestle, Halloween, acting in

the school play, and other problems that

many middle school students face.