Definition of Genre

FICTION

POETRY

DRAMA

NONFICTION

The 4 Main Types of Genre are:

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Events COULD happen to real people
• Not based on history
• Not based on science

REALISTIC FICTION

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Based on REAL events or people
• Takes the readers back to a historical setting

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HISTORICAL FICTION

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Contains a puzzling event or crime that must be solved
• Full of suspense
• The reader tries to solve the crime before the protagonist does

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MYSTERY

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Includes impossible elements such as magic, mythical creatures, or talking animals
• Setting of fantasy stories is often medieval or magical

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FANTASY

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Animal is the hero of the story
• Reader experiences everything from the animal's perspective
• Can have elements of a fable, fantasy, or realism

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ANIMAL Fiction

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Based on futuristic science or technology
• Setting is often in the future or on other planets
• Explores the idea of changes to the world brought on by science

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SCIENCE

FICTION

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Action-packed and full of suspense
• Has a puzzling situation or hero/heroine and villain problem
• Makes the reader feel strong emotions (fright)

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THRILLER

• Type of realistic fiction
• Characters often have a dangerous journey or experience
• Takes place in realistic settings in the present
• Main character often does something heroic

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ADVENTURE

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Revolves around the relationship between two characters
• Two main characters must overcome obstacles to be together

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ROMANCE

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• Not a true story (fictional)
• Told orally
• Passed down from generation to generation
• Good vs. evil
• Lesson or moral is learned at the end

TRADITIONAL

LITERATURE

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Passed down through generations
• Based on real person/event but is exaggerated
• Main character is human and is often heroic

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LEGEND

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Told orally over time before being written down
• Has good and bad characters, may be people or animals
• Happy ending

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FOLK TALE

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Has a hero with larger-than-life abilities
• Might be based on a real person or situation
• Adventures and events are exaggerated

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TALL TALE

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Often begins with, “Once upon a time…”
• Takes place in far away places
• Royal characters (kings, queens)
• Good vs. evil

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FAIRY TALE

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Non-human characters like gods/goddesses
• Seeks to explain how things came to be (such as rainbows)
• From ancient times

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MYTH

• Not a true story (fictional)
• Short stories
• Passed down through generations
• Talking animals that act like people
• Teaches a lesson or moral

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FABLE

• Stories that explain how something came to be
• Sub-genre of folktales
• Can be found in many cultures around the world

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POURQUOI

TALES

• Real information
• Can be current or from the past
• Contains text features
• Has a main idea and key details
• Includes many subgenres

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NONFICTION

• True story (nonfiction)
• Informs about a real person’s life
• Told by someone OTHER than the person featured in the text

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BIOGRAPHY

• True story (nonfiction)
• Informs about the history of a real person’s life
• Told BY the person featured in the text

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY

• Facts and information (nonfiction)
• Gives information about a specific topic
• Written in a variety of ways, such as books, magazines, articles, newspapers, etc.

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INFORMATIONAL

• True story of a memory
• Reveals feelings of the writer
• Just a snapshot – not a whole life
• Shows what the author learned

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MEMOIR

• True story (nonfiction)
• Author tells the factual events through a story
• More dramatic than traditional nonfiction
• Uses both fiction and nonfiction writing structures

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NARRATIVE

NONFICTION

• Fact based (nonfiction)
• Short piece of writing that expresses the author’s opinion or point of view
• Focused on a specific theme or subject

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ESSAY

• Can be real or imagined
• Uses language and sounds in special ways
• Written in lines and stanzas
• Includes lyrical, narrative, and dramatic poetry

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POETRY

• Tells a story through a poem
• Includes story elements AND poetic techniques such as figurative language and stanzas
• Can be long or short, real or imagined

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NARRATIVE

POETRY

• Expresses personal thoughts and emotions
• Has a set pattern, much like a song
• Haiku, Cinquain, Sonnets, Odes, and Elegies are types of Lyrical Poetry
• Ex: “The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe

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LYRICAL

POETRY

• Closely related to drama
• Characters in the poem speak
• Tells a story through the character’s thoughts or dialogue
• Ex: “The Seven Ages of Man” by William Shakespeare

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DRAMATIC

POETRY

Drama

• Written to perform
• Told through character dialogue
• Includes unique elements such as stage directions, acts, and scenes
• Includes comedies and tragedies

• Type of drama
• Serious play with tragic events
• Main character is a hero/heroine
• A series of actions leads to the downfall of the main character

TRAGEDY

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• Everyday characters in funny situations
• Light in tone but might point out serious problems in society
• Designed to amuse
• Has a happy ending

COMEDY

• Written to influence or convince the reader to do or believe something
• Can be a letter, speech, debate, or advertisement
• Uses emotional language

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PERSUASIVE

WRITING

SHORT STORY

• Can be read in one sitting
• Usually has one main conflict from which suspense rises
• Contains one plotline
• Covers a short period of time
• Ex: “Stray,” by Cynthia Rylant

©Natayle Brown