Introduction to Literature: Prose and Poetry

• "Every man's memory is his literature" according to Aldous Huxley.
• Literature comes from the Latin word "litera," meaning letter.
• Literature includes any form of writing, such as essays.
• Literature also extends to a whole body of literary work related to a specific culture.

Why Use Literature?

• Literature is authentic material.
• Literature encourages interaction and creativity.
• Literature expands language awareness.
• Literature allows students to learn about their own and people's cultural heritages.
• Literature educates the whole person.

Types of Literature

• Literature can be categorized into Prose and Poetry

Prose

• "Prosa" is of Latin origin, which translates to straightforward, and is a literary medium that is characterized by irregularity and variety of rhythm and its close resemblance to the patterns of everyday speech.
• Prose is divided into Fiction or telling stories which are not based on facts.
• Prose is also divided into Non-Fiction or telling stories which are real or based on facts.

Fable

• A short story that features animals, plants, and inanimate objects with human qualities
• The purpose of a fable is to illustrate a moral, often explicitly stated as a maxim.

Parable

• Illustrates a moral or religious lesson, featuring human actors.

Folk Tale

• A body of expressive culture, including tales, oral history, and popular beliefs transmitted through memory rather than print.

Legend

• A fictitious narrative, about origin stories of wonderful events passed down through generations

Myth

• A sacred story concerning the origin of the world
• Involves the supernatural and gods/heroes to explain natural phenomena.

Fairy Tale

• A story featuring folkloric characters, i.e., fairies, goblins, witches, giants
• Are far-fetched and usually have a happy ending,

Short Story

• Concisely focuses on one incident with a single plot, a single setting, and limited characters.

Novel

• A long, written, fictional prose
• Often has a complex plot and is divided into chapters.

Picaresque

• Details the adventures of a lowborn adventurer, moving from place to place for survival.

Epistolary

• A novel told through the medium of letters by one or more of the characters.

Gothic

• A pseudomedieval fiction having a prevailing atmosphere of mystery and terror.

Roman a clef

• A novel with a key, whose characters and plot are related to real-life happenings.

Historical

• A story set amidst historical events, attempting to convey the spirit, manners, and social conditions of the past.

Manners

• A work of fiction that recreates a social world, conveying detailed observations of customs, values, and mores of a complex society.

Novelette

• Short prose fiction, between 7,500 and 17,500 words
• Historically, it referred to a romantic or sentimental story

Novella

• Ranges from 17,500 and 40,000 words
• Sometimes called a long short story or a short novel.

Prose Drama

• A literary work written in prose and intended for presentation by actors.

Non-Fiction Essay Type

• Short literary composition, often written from an author's point of view.

Non-Fiction Biography Type

• An account of someone's life written or produced by another person.

Non-Fiction Autobiography Type

• An account of somebody's life written by that person.

Non-Fiction Diary/Journal Type

• A personal record of events in somebody's life.

Poetry

• Poetry is a literary work written in verse.
• Poetry can be divided into Narrative, Lyric, and Dramatic Poetry.

Narrative Poetry

• Tells a story using richly imaginative and rhythmic language.

Lyric Poetry

• Expresses personal thoughts and feelings.

Dramatic Poetry

• Drama written in verse to be spoken or sung.

Epic

• A long, narrative poem divided into distinct parts and episodes
• Contains details of heroic deeds and events.

Ballad

• A short narrative poem intended to be sung
• Told in a simple, serious story and usually has a tragic ending.

Metrical Romance

• A long, rambling love story, chivalry and religion written in verse
• Is characteristic of the Middle Ages.

Metrical Tale

• A short story in verse, simple, straightforward, and realistic in manner

Free Verse

• Written without strict meter or rhyme.

Blank Verse

• Has a regular rhythm and line but no rhyme.

Idyll

• Depicts simple pastoral or rural scenes and the life of country folk
• A poem that depicts rural life in a peaceful, idealized way.

Ode

• Is dignified in subject and written to celebrate.

Elegy

• A mournful or reflective poem composed as a lament for someone who has died.

Song

• A short lyric poem intended to be sung with words called lyrics

Sonnet

• 14-line poem with a strict rhyme scheme and structure.

Nursery Ryme

• A traditional song or poem taught to young children.

Limerick

• Five-line poem with a strict form
• Frequently witty with humorous intent.

Couplet

• Consists of two lines that rhyme and have the same meter.

Haiku

• A form ofJapanese poetry with 17 syllables
• Often describes nature or a season, using of three lines

Simple Lyric

• Touches every mood and emotion of the human heart
• Includes poems that do not properly belong under any of the lyric types

Riddle

• A statement, question, or phrase that has a double meaning
• Creates a puzzle to be solved.

Comedy

• A comical play that aims to amuse and ends happily.

Tragedy

• A serious play with a tragic theme, often involving the heroic struggle.

Farce

• A comic play marked by broadly satirical comedy and improbable plot.

Masque

• A form of dramatic entertainment (16th and 17th century), performed by masked actors.