LITERATURE GENRES
(CHARACTERISTICS)

Prepared by:  Paulette Cefalu-Walkwitz

MODERN FICTION
1)  The event in the story could really happy.
2)  Includes historical novels and stories about people from other countries
3)  Not a true story
EPICS
1)  Sometimes verse
2)  Includes tales about one hero
HISTORICAL FICTION
1)  Main characters may be created by the author or they may be real figures
2)  Depicts life honestly and accurately
3)  Uses historical events
4)  Takes place in definite time in history
5)  Conflict or problem is involved
6)  Uses real and fictional events
7)  Words reflect the thoughts of people during those times
POETRY
1)  Expresses ideas with different forms
2)  Expresses feelings with different forms
3)  Often rhymes,  but not always
4)  Plays with the sounds of words
5)  Uses word pictures
INFORMATIONAL
1)  Accurate
2)  Gives us information on particular subject
3)  Could be used for resources for reports

FOLK TALES
1)  Brief introduction
2)  Vigorous plot
3)  Swift conclusion
4)  Natural dialogue
5)  Includes stories that were passed down from generation to generation
6)  Includes fairy tales
7)  Includes "trickster" tales
8)  Includes pourquoi (why it happened) tales
MODERN FANTASY
1)  Author plays with setting, time, and characters
2)  Sometimes includes playfulness and humor
3)  Written by known authors
4)  Can not happen in real life
5)  Place is usually realistic
6)  Problems are solved using magic or impossible strategies
7)  Characters are fictional
8)  Blends fantasy with reality
9)  Animals sometimes talk
10)  Theme or main idea is often serious
FABLES
1)  Brief
2)  Teaches lesson
3)  Chief character - animal or inanimate object
4)  Single act
BIOGRAPHY
1)  Deals with the life of a real person
2)  Usually describes the person's environment
3)  Shows how the person has had an impact on others' lives
MYTH
1)  Attempts to explain vital outlines of existence


SOURCES:

Burgess, Susan A.  Children and Books, Harper Collins, 1991.

Tomlinson, Carl and Lynch-Brown, Carol.  Essentials of Children's Literature, Allyn and Bacon, 1993.