Nonfiction is prose that

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Nonfiction is prose that

• explains ideas, or
• tells about real people
• is based on fact
• can be verified

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Fact vs. Truth

• Although nonfiction is based on fact, it is false
  to assume that fact and truth are the same
  thing.

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The Truth

• It is impossible to tell the whole truth
  about any experience.
• Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole
  truth, and nothing but the truth?

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Nonfiction

• The very act of putting something into words
  changes it.

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Diction authors choice of words

• The particular words we choose tell something
  about
• our actual experience
• our personality
• our personal beliefs or prejudices
• our background
• our purpose as the writer ()

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Purpose authors intention or reason

• Every good writer of nonfiction has a purpose
  when he or she writes.

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Purpose

• The purpose may be
• to explain or inform
• to create a mood or emotion
• to tell about a series of events
• to persuade the reader to believe something or to
  do something.

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Forms of Nonfiction

• Reports
• Factual accounts of places or events

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Forms of Nonfiction

• Essay
• - Short work about particular subject
• - Reveals much about the writer
• - Tone conversational, sometimes humorous
• - May be no attempt to be objective
• - Focus writers feelings and responses
• to an experience

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Forms of Nonfiction

• Biography life story of
• another person
• Autobiography writer tells own life story

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Forms of Nonfiction

• Memoir
• -Form of autobiography
• -Record of facts and events
• -Covers particular incident or time period
• -Usually writers personal knowledge,
• experiences, and observations

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Nonfiction

• All types of nonfiction
• include literary methods and devices.

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Nonfiction

• Four major methods
• used in nonfiction
• Description
• Narration
• Exposition
• Persuasion

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Methods used in Nonfiction

• Description
• Portrait or impression of person, place, or
  object
• Uses images words that appeal to our senses
• (see, hear, smell, taste, or touch
  something)

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Methods used in Nonfiction

• Narration
• - tells a true story
• - a series of events
• - usually chronological order
• - e.g. news stories, biographies

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Methods used in Nonfiction

• Exposition purpose
• - to explain or inform
• - to define or discuss
• - to clarify an idea

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Methods used in Nonfiction

• Persuasion purpose
• to convince the reader to do something
• to convince the reader to accept the writers
  POV

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All essay forms answer questions

• Exposition answers
• What is it? How does it work?
• Description answers
• What does it look, sound, smell,
• feel and/or taste like?

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All essay forms answer questions

• Narration answers
• What happened?
• Persuasion answers
• How should I feel? What should I do?

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Nonfiction purpose

• The writer tries to interest us
• with the purpose of the piece.

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Nonfiction elements

• To interest us, he uses many elements also
  found in fiction
• Conflict Suspense
• Characters Dialogue
• Irony Comedy
• Figures of speech

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Other terms to learn in this unit
Authors argument Evidence Cause and
effect Fact vs. Truth Chronological
order Focus Connotation Hyperbole Denotatio
n
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Other terms to learn in this unit

• Inference Opinion
• Informational text Propaganda
• Journals Subjective
• Literal language Tone
• Objective

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Authors argument

• The point the author tries to make

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Cause and effect

• Linking two related ideas
• Used in persuasion

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Chronological order

• Time order in writing
• E.g. how-to instructions

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connotation

• Ideas associated with the meaning of a word

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denotation

• Dictionary definition of a word

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evidence

• Facts used to support or prove an argument
• E.g. an analogy or an anecdote

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Fact vs. truth

• Something known to exist or to have happened
• VS.
• Personal truth

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focus

• Idea on which writing is centered

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hyperbole

• Exaggeration or overstatement, often comic

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inference

• Educated guess
• Conclusion or judgment
• From evidence

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Informational text

• Writing that provides knowledge
• Guides and educates
• E.g. magazines, newspapers, instruction manuals,
  textbooks, web sites, atlases, journals

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journals

• Opinions, comments, and thoughts of people
• Usually from another time

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literal language

• Uses ordinary (non-figurative) meaning of words

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objective

• Unbiased, impartial, impersonal
• Based on facts, not subjective

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opinion

• Personal attitude, belief, or judgment

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propaganda

• Info or ideas spread to promote or injure a
  cause, group, or country

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subjective

• Personal or individual opinion
• Not objective

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tone

• Writers attitude to audience and/or subject