Introduction to Literature

ENG 102
TYPES OF LITERATURE: THE GENRES
• Lit may be classified into: –
• Fiction
• Non-fiction
• Poetry
Fiction
Fiction: Fantasy
• A story that is imaginative, but could never really happen. The setting
may be of another world. Characters might be magical.
Fiction: Historical Fiction
• A story that takes place in a historically accurate time and setting. The
characters and some events are fictional.
Fiction: Mystery
• A story that usually involves suspense and the solving of a crime.
Clues are typically given throughout the story to solve the mystery at
the end of the book
Fiction: Realistic fiction
• A story that seems real or could happen in real life. It is set in present
day and includes modern day problems and events.
Fiction: Science fiction
• A story that is typically set in the future or on other planets. It is
based on the impact of actual, imagined, or potential science.
Fiction: Adventure
• A story where a protagonist and other major characters and are
placed in dangerous situations. The characters must use their wit and
skills to defeat the antagonist.
Fiction: Tales
• Folktales: Fable Fairy Tale Legend Tell Tale Myth
• Fable folktale: A brief story that is meant to tell a lesson or a moral.
The characters are usually animals with human characteristics.
• Fairy tale folktale: A story that has magical elements. The characters
are usually fairies, giants, elves, and other magical creatures.
• Legend folktale: A story usually about a national or folk hero. This
story takes place in a particular time and place and is partly true and
partly fiction. The character traits of the hero are typically
exaggerated
Fiction: Tales
• Tell tale Folktale: A humorous story with extreme exaggerations. The
main character, or hero, usually does impossible things with ease.
• Myth Folktale: A story that is often based on a historical event that is
meant to serve as an explanation for some phenomenon of nature or
human behavior. Characters are usually gods.
• Fiction refers to prose stories based in the imagination of authors.
The essence of fiction is narration: the relating or recounting of a
sequence
The Focus of Fictional Works
• One or a few major characters who change & grow as a result of how
they deal with other characters & how they attempt to solve their
problems. (their ability to make decisions, their awareness & insight,
their attitude toward others, their sensitivity, & their moral capacity)
of events or actions.
 Fiction vs. history
Although fiction, like all imaginative literature, can introduce true
historical details, it is NOT real history, for its main purpose is to
interest, stimulate, instruct, & divert, not to create a precise historical
record.

Because literature is an art and not a science, it is impossible to

specifically quantify any of these elements within any story or to
guarantee that each will be present in any given story.
Elements of Story or Fiction
• Plot
• Character
• Theme
• Setting
• Point of View
• Tone and Style
 PLOT
• An author’s selection and arrangement of incidents in a story to shape the action
and give the story a particular focus.
• Discussions of plot include not just what happens, but also how and why things
happen the way they do.
Plot may have three parts: Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action
Rising Action
Complication(s) creates some sort of conflict for the protagonist (the main
character).
Climax
the moment of greatest emotional tension in a narrative, usually marking a turning
point in the plot at which the rising action reverses to become the falling action.
Falling Action or RESOLUTION
The conclusion of a plot’s conflicts and complications. The resolution follows the
climax in the plot.
 Conflict

A problem or
struggle
the character
must face in the
story
There are two types of Conflict

Internal: External:
Inside the Character Outside the Character
Internal Conflict

Internal Conflict

Internal conflicts are thoughts or feelings the characters

struggle with like thinking they are going to lose a game
or feeling worried.
External Conflict

Conditions or people that are causing problems for

the main character are called
external conflicts.
These problems are happening “outside” of the character.
 Climax

Climax

Plot : Shortly
Events in after the
the story climax,
lead to the the story
CLIMAX ends

Introduction Resolution

The story leads up to the most exciting part

 Resolution

By the resolution,
or ending of the
story,
we learn how the
conflict is solved . .
. one way or
another.
 Resolution

Resolution =
The end
The End of
the story

We’re NOT done with our work though . . .

 Character
• a person presented in a dramatic or narrative work
• A hero or heroine, often called the PROTAGONIST, is the central
character who engages the reader’s interest and empathy.
• The ANTAGONIST is the character, force, or collection of forces that
stand directly opposed to the protagonist and gives rise to the conflict
of the story.
Types of characters

• Round characters are those the reader/listener/viewer gets to know

well. They have a variety of traits that make them believable.

• Flat characters are less well developed and have fewer or limited
traits or belong to a group, class, or stereotype.
Character Change
• Dynamic characters are rounded characters that change.

• Static (stock) characters are round or flat characters that do not

change during the story.
 Theme
• Theme is the central idea or meaning of a story. Theme in fiction is
rarely presented at all; it is abstracted from the details of character
and action that compose the story.
• It provides a unifying point around which the plot, characters,
setting, point of view, symbols, and other elements of a story are
organized.
• Be careful to distinguish theme from plot – the story’s sequence of
actions – and from subject – what the story is generally about
 Setting
The setting is the physical and social context in which the action of a
story occurs. The major elements of setting are the time, the place,
and the social environment that frames the characters.
Setting can be used to evoke a mood or atmosphere that will prepare
the reader for what is to come.
Sometimes, writers choose a particular setting because of traditional
associations with that setting that are closely related to the action of a
story.
 Point of view
• Point of view refers to who tells the story and how it is told. The possible
ways of telling a story are many, and more than one point of view can be
worked into a single story.
• However, the various points of view that storytellers draw upon can be
grouped into two broad categories:
• Third-Person Narrator (uses pronouns he, she, or they):
• Omniscient: The narrator is all-knowing and takes the reader inside the
characters’ thoughts, feelings, and motives, as well as shows what the
characters say and do.
• Limited omniscient: The narrator takes the reader inside one (or at most
very few characters) but neither the reader nor the character(s) has access
to the inner lives of any of the other characters in the story.
• Objective: The narrator does not see into the mind of any character;
rather he or she reports the action and dialogue without telling the
reader directly what the characters feel and think.
• First-Person Narrator (uses pronoun I): The narrator presents the point
of view of only one character’s consciousness, which limits the narrative
to what the first-person narrator knows, experiences, infers, or can find
out by talking to other characters
 Tone
• Tone is the author’s implicit attitude toward the reader, subject,
and/or the people, places, and events in a work as revealed by the
elements of the author’s style. Tone may be characterized as serious
or ironic, sad or happy, private of public, angry or affectionate, bitter
or nostalgic, or any other attitudes and feelings that human beings
experience.
 Non-fiction
• BIOGRAPHY: A history of someone’s life, or part of someone’s life.
This is a true story about a real person.
• AUTOBIOGRAPHY: A biography written by a person about his/her own
life and history.
• ESSAY: A short composition, usually written from the author’s point of
view. Essays can be persuasive, comparative, literary criticism,
political manifestos, arguments, observations, recollections, or
reflections.
 Non-Fiction: Biography
• ENCYCLOPEDIA: A comprehensive written work that is used as a
reference. It contains articles on various topics and branches of
knowledge.
• MAGAZINE: A periodical that contains articles, pictures,
advertisements, stories, etc. that is published on a regular schedule.
• BROCHURE: A pamphlet or leaflet advertisement. Brochures may
advertise locations, events, hotels, products, services, etc. They are
usually brief in language and have an eye- catching design.
• MEMOIR: A type of an autobiography. It is a writer’s own account of
one or two important events and is told in the first person. It is
descriptive and highly personal.
 Non-Fiction: Autobiography
• TEXTBOOK: A manual of instruction or standard book in any branch of
study. Textbooks are usually written according to educational demands.
• RESEARCH REPORT: An informational, objective piece of writing based on
multiple accurate references.
• NEWSPAPER: A publication containing news, information, current events,
and advertising. There are feature articles on topics such as political
events, crime, business, art/entertainment, society, and sports. Many
newspapers also include some editorial columns. Other sections include
advertising, comics, and coupons.
• EDITORIAL: An article that is usually in a newspaper or magazine, or on
television or the radio. This article expresses the author’s personal opinion
and view on a particular topic.
 Non-Fiction: Essay
• HOW-TO: An instructional form of writing that demonstrates how to do a
task, activity, procedure, etc.
• ALMANAC: An annual publication that contains tabular information in a
particular field(s) according to the calendar. Information such as
astronomical data, the rising and setting of the sun and moon, eclipses,
hours of the tide, etc.
• ATLAS: A collection of maps of Earth, or parts of Earth. The atlas presents
geographic features, political boundaries, and geopolitical, social, religious,
and economic statistics.
• ADVERTISEMENT: A public promotion of a product or service. It is a form of
communication used to help sell these products or services. It usually
describes how the products or services can benefit the customer.
Functions of Genre
• Different genres have different roles. For example, fiction and
dramatic genres help students and writers learn and improve their
communication skills. A poetic genre, on the other hand, enhances
imaginative and emotional power of the readers. Non-fictional texts
and essays help readers develop analytical and persuasive
capabilities. However, the major function of genre is to establish a
code of behavior between the writers and audience, and keep the
readers informed about the topics discussed or the themes
presented.
THANK YOU