Elements of Non-Fiction

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Elements of Non-Fiction

• By Mr. Cotton

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NONFICTION

• Nonfiction is writing about real people, places,
  and events.
• Mainly written to convey factual information.
• Information may be shaped by the authors own
  purpose and attitudes.

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Two Categories of Nonfiction

• Informative- factual information to inform
• examples magazines, pamphlets, encyclopedias,
  textbooks

• Literary- actual places and true events

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Autobiography

• A true story about a persons life told by that
  person (usually a book)

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Biography

• A true story of a persons life as told by
  someone else, a biographer writes it

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Essay

• A short piece of nonfiction writing that deals
  with one subject

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Types of Essay

• Persuasive
• Personal
• Narrative

• Expository
• Descriptive

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Persuasive Essay

• Writer tries to convince a reader to share a
  belief, agree with an opinion, or to take some
  action.
• 1. Facts are selected and arranged in a way to
  get readers to share a writers opinion.
• 2. Examples newspaper editorial, political
  speech

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Expository Essay

• Writers primary purpose is to convey or explain
  information.
• 1. Facts are used as neutrally as possible
• 2. Examples report on a scientific discovery,
  instructions

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Personal Essay

• Expresses a writers thoughts, feelings, or
  opinions on a subject usually written in an
  informal, conversational style.

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Descriptive Essay

• Writer tries to recreate a person, place, or
  event mostly through language that appeals to the
  senses.
• Examples travelers journal, autobiographical
  essay of a hometown

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Narrative Essay

• Writers purpose is to relate a series of events,
  usually in chronological order.
• Has the form of a story (often with characters
  and dialogue)
• Examples historical essay, account of a soccer
  game

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Thesis

• Theme of an essay.
• 1. In narrative nonfiction (like biographies),
  theme is a perception about life
• 2. In no narrative fiction (like essays), theme
  is the main idea or opinion the writer wants the
  reader to understand

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Objective versus Subjective Writing

• 1. Objective facts, which can be proved to be
  true by the senses, the calendar, or the clock
• Examples the geographic location of a city,
  the time of day
• 2. Subjective details that may be true, but are
  verifiable only by reference to your own state of
  mind
• a. Examples feelings about an event,
  description of a person
• b. Word connotation (associations that affect
  meaning

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Strategies for Nonfiction Reading

• 1. Preview
• 2. Figure out the organization
• 3. Separate FACT and OPINION
• 4. Question????
• 5. Predict
• 6. Build
• 7. Evaluate

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1. Preview

• Skim selection to get an idea of what its about
  by looking at title, pictures diagrams,
  subtitles, and terms you see in boldface

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2. Figure out the Organization

• Chronological order or how the work is arranged

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3. Separate Fact and Opinion

• FACTS- statements that can be proven

• OPINION- statements that cannot be proven

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4. Question

• Why did things happen the way they did? Do you
  share the writers opinion?

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5. Predict

• What will happen next? What will the author say
  about an issue?

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6. Build

• Add new information to what you already know, and
  see if your ideas or opinions change.

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7. Evaluate

• Form opinions about people, events, and ideas.
  Decide whether or not you like the way a piece is
  written.

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Intended Audience

• The type of people who would like this genre of
  writing.

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Authors Purpose

• Entertain
• Persuade
• Inform