LITERATURE NOTES

Literature is just about anything written. Literature is a kind of art usually written, which offers pleasure and
illumination and there is an oral literature, too.

Literature is divided into 3 major genres or groups. A. Prose, B. Poetry, C. Drama.

A. PROSE: Prose is the ordinary form of written language. Most writing that is not poetry, drama or song is
considered prose. Prose occurs in two forms: Fiction and Non- fiction.

1. Fiction: fiction is prose writing that tells about imaginary characters and events. Short stories, novels and folk
tales are works of fiction.

a. Short story: is prose writing that is more realistic than the tale and of modern origin, and the writer usually
presents the main events in greater fullness. A short story is more than just a sequence of happenings, and simpler and shorter
than novels. There are various genres(types)

(Spy, Detective, Adventure, Humorous, Science-fiction, Anectode, Ghost, Horror, and Romantic)

ANECTODE; is a brief story about an interesting, amusing or strange event. Writers tell anectodes to entertain or
to make a point.

b. NOVEL; is a long work of fiction. Novels contain all the elements of short stories including characters , plot,
conflict, and setting. A novel can allow the writer to include more people and events, and is generally more complex than a
short story. Novels are much longer than short stories.

c. FOLK TALE;is a story composed orally and then passed from person to person by word of mouth. Folk tales
originated among people who could neither read nor write. These people entertained one another by telling stories aloud,
often about heroes, magic, or romance.

Types of Folk tales are :

Fable; is a brief story or poem, usually with animal characters, that teaches a lesson or moral. The moral is usually
stated at the end of the fable.

LEGEND; is widely told story about the past, one that may or may not have a foundation in fact. Every culture has
its own legends. It contains fantastic details such as supernatural beings.

MYTH; is a fictional tale that explains the actions of Gods or heroes or the origins of elements of nature. Myths are
part of the oral tradition. They are composed orally and then passed from generation to generation by word of mouth.

FANTASY; is highly imaginative writing that contains elements not found in real life. Examples of fantasy include
stories that involve supernatural elements, stories that resemble fairy tales, stories that deal with imaginary places, creatures
and science-fiction stories.

2. NON-FICTION; Non-fiction is prose writing that presents and explains idea or that tells about real people,
places, objects, or events. Autobiographies, biographies, essays, newspapers, and

articles are all types of Non-fiction.

a. Autobiography; is a form of non-fiction in which a person tells his or her own life story. An autobigraphy may
tell about the person’s whole life or only a part of it.

b. Biography; is a form of non-fiction in which a writer tells the life story of another person. Biographies have
been written about many famous historical and contemporary people.

c. Essay;  is generally a short piece of writing, written from an author's personal point of view about a particular
point.

B. POETRY: Poetry is one of the three major types of literature. Poetry is a rhythmical composition of words
expressing an attitude, designed to surprise, delight and arouse an emotional response. Poems in general are used to appeal
the reader’s sense and emotion and are written in lines, these lines are grouped into stanza. There are three types of poetry.
 1. Lyric poetry; it is a short poem expressing the thoughts and feelings of a single speaker.

2. Narrative poetry; it relates a series of events and its purpose is to tell a story.

3. Dramatic poetry; it presents the voice of an imaginary character speaking directly, without any additional
narration by the author.

C. DRAMA: A drama is a story written to be performed by actors. The script of a drama is made up of dialogue
and stage directions. The dialogue is the words spoken by the actors. The stage directions, usually printed in italics, they tell
how the actors should look, move, and speak. They also describe the setting, sound effects and lighting. Like short stories,
novels and narrative poems; dramas have plots, conflict, settings and characters therefore when writing about drama, you can
make use of most of these techniques or special devices of imagery, sound and figurative language.

TECHNIQUES USED IN LITERATURE

Allusion: An allusion is usually indirect reference to a person, place , event, literary work or work of art.
Understanding what a writer is saying often depends on recognizing allusion.

Irony: Irony is the general name given to literary technique that involves surprising, interesting, or amusing
contradiction. In irony situation, an event occurs that directly contradicts the expectations of the characters, the reader or the
audience. There are three types of irony,

1) Verbal irony: In verbal irony, words are used to suggest the opposite of their usual meanings.

2) Dramatic irony: In dramatic irony, there is contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader or
audience knows to be true. The audience or the reader knows more than the character in the story.

3) Situational irony: situational irony involves an incongruity between what is expected or intended and what
actually occurs.

Image: An image is a word or phrase that appeals to one or more of the five senses. Writers use images to describe
how their subjects look, sound, feel, taste and smell. Images are also used to create specific description, to create setting.
Images can also be a mean of characterization, and can lead us to appreciate the theme of the novel.

Symbol: A symbol is anything that stands for or represents something else. Symbols are common in everyday life.
A dove with an olive branch in its beak is a symbol of peace. A blindfolded woman holding a balanced scale is a symbol of
justice.

Description: A description is a portrait, in words of a person, place or objects. Descriptive writing uses images that
appeal to the five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell.

Sensory language: sensory language is writing or speech that appeals to one or more of the five senses.

Figurative language: figurative language is writing or speech that is not meant to be taken literally. Many types of
figurative language are known as figures of speech, common figures of speech include hyperbole, metaphor, personification
and simile.

1) Hyperbole: Hyperbole is a way speaking or writing that makes someone or something sound bigger, better,
more than they are. It is used for exaggeration of effects.

2) Metaphor: A metaphor is a figure of speech in which something is described as though it was something else.
A metaphor, like simile, Works by pointing out similarity between two unlike things. A metaphor can be composed of nouns,
adjectives and verbs.

‘my days are in the yellow leaf;

The flowers and fruits of love are gone’

Lord Byron
 Here, age is compared to the yellow leaves of Autumn and love is compared to fruit and flowers.

3) Extended metaphor: In extended metaphor as in regular metaphor a subject is described as though it were
something else. However, extended metaphor differs from regular metaphor in that several comparisons are made.

4) Personification: Personification is a type of figurative language in which non human subject is given human
characteristics.

5) Simile: A simile is a figure of speech that uses ‘like’or ‘as’ to make a direct comparison between two unlike
ideas. Everyday speech often contains similes, such as ‘pale as ghost’ ‘good as gold’ and ‘clever as fox’. Writers uses similes
to describe people, places and things vividly.

6) Onomatopoeia: Onomatopoeia is the use of words that imitates sounds, crash, buzz, screech, hiss, neigh, jingle,
and cluck are examples of onomatopoeia.

All these techniques are used to maket he description vivid and interesting though such figures of speech are
specially important in poetry, they are used in prose as well.

PLOT AND SETTING

The plot of a literary work is what happens in it or the plot is the sequence of events in a literary work. In most
novels, dramas, short stories, and narrative poems, the plot involves both characters and a central conflict. The plot usually
begins with an exposition that introduces the setting, the characters and the basic situation. This is followed by an
introduction of the central conflict. The conflict then increases during the rising action until it reaches a high point of interest
or suspense, the climax. The climax is followed by the falling action, or end of the central conflict. Any events that occur
during the falling action make up the resolution, or denouement.

Some plots do not have all these parts. Some stories begin with the inciting incident and end with the resolution. In
some, the inciting incident has occured before the opening of the story. A summary of a plot is called synopsis. Sometimes
the time and place, the ‘when and where’ of the plot, are called the setting.

Techniques of plot

Suspense: suspense is a feeling of anxious uncertainty about the outcome of events in literary work. Writers create
suspense by rising questions in the minds of their readers. For example; in ‘A day’s wait’ raises questions about whether the
boy will recover from his illness.

Surprise Ending: A surprise ending is a conclution that is unexpected. Sometimes a surprise ending follows a
false resolution. The reader thinks that the conflict has already been resolved but then is confronted with a new twist that
changes the outcome of the plot. a surprise ending often foreshadowed or subtly hinted at the course of the work.

Foreshadowing: Foreshadowing is an advance sign or warning of what is to come in the future. The author of a
mystery novel might use foreshadowing in the early chapter of his book to give readers an inkling of an impending murder.
When you want to let people know about an event that is yet to occur, you can use foreshadowing. Foreshadowing is used as
a literary device to tease readers about plot turns that will occur later in the story. A fortune teller might use foreshadowing,
warning that a short life line is a sign of some impending disaster.
e.g The witches in the opening scene of Shakespeare's Macbeth foreshadow the evil events that will follow.

Flashback: A flashback is a sction of a literary work that interrupts the sequence of events to relate an event from
an earlier time.

Setting: The setting of a literary work is the time and the place of the action. The time includes not only the
historical period- the past, present, or future but also the year, the season, the time of day, and even the weather. The place
may be a specific country, state, region, community, neighbourhood, building, institution, or home. Details such as dialects,
clothing, customs, and modes of transportation are often used to establish setting. In most stories, the setting serves as a
backdrawn- a context in which the characters interact. In some stories the setting is crucial to the plot; it almost becomes a
character in itself. For example; the weather on the planet Venus is central to the plot of Ray Bradbury’s story ‘All summer in
a day.’

NARRATION, NARRATORS AND POINT OF VIEW

Narration : Narration is writing that tells a story. Fictional Works, such as novels and short stories are examples of
narration. Writers have used different characters to tell the stories. Narrators present the events from different angles, from
different point of view. Writer’s choice of narrator determines the story’s point of view.

Narrator: A narrator is a speaker who tells a story.

First person narrator: is one who tells a story and participates in its action.

Third person narrator: is one who stands outside the action and speaks about it.

Point of view: point of view is the perspctive or vantage point from which a story is told. Three commonly used
points of view are, first person, omniscient, third person and limted third person.

First person point os view: In stories which are told from the first person point of view, the narrator is a character
in the story and refers to himself or herself with pronoun ‘I’ . ‘Ribbons’ the character Stacy serves as a first person narrator.

Third person point of view: The third person point of view is a form of storytelling in which a narrator relates all
action in third person, using third person pronouns such as "he" or "she." Third person point of view may
be omniscient or limited. Often new writers feel most comfortable with first person, butwriting in the third person allows a
writer more freedom in how a story is told.

Omniscient third person point of view: Third person omniscient is a method of storytelling in which the narrator
knows the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters in the story, as opposed to third person limited, which adheres closely
to one character's perspective.

Limited third –peron point of view: means that the narrator relates the inner thoughts and feelings of only one
character and everything is viewed from this character’s perspective.

CHARACTERS AND CHARACTERIZATION

Character: A character is a person or animal who takes part in the action of a literary work. The main character is
the most important character in the story, poem, or play. The minor character is one who takes part in the action but who is
not the focus of attention. Characters are sometimes classified as flat or round.

Flat character: is one-sided and often stereotypical. They are often described briefly with one or two vivid details.

Round character: is fully developed and exhibits many trait-often both faults and virtues. They have complex
personalities, they are characterized in more subtly ways, and develop during the course of a novel. The characters in a novel
are usually a mixture of main characters who tend to be round and minor characters who tend to be flat

Characters can also be classified as dynamic or static.

Dynamic character: is one who changes or grows during the course of the work.
 Static character: is one who does not change.

Characters are also called protagonist and antagonist.

Protagonist: is the main character in a literary work.

Antagonist: is a character or force in conflict with a main character or protagonist.

CHARACTERIZATION: Characterization is the act of creating and developing a character. Writers use two
major methods of characterization, direct and indirect method.

When describing a character directly, a writer states the character’s trait or characteristics. When describing a
character indirectly, the writer describes the character’s appearance, actions or speech. At other times the writer tells what
other participants in the story say and think about the character. The reader then draws his or her own conclusions.

Conflict: A conflict is a struggle between opposing forces. Conflict is one of the most important elements of
stories, novels and plays because it causes the action. There are two kinds of conflicts, internal and external.

Internal conflict: is one that takes place within the mind of a character. The character struggles to make a decision,
take an action or overcome a feeling. For example in ‘A Day’s Wait’, the boy struggles with his feelings of fear and despair
because he believes he is dying

External conflict: is one in which a character struggles againts some outside force(againts nature, weather
conditions or an antagonist)

MOOD: mood or atmosphere is the feeling created in the reader by literary work or passage. Writers use many
devices to creat mood; including images, dialogues, setting and plot. A writer often creats a mood at the beginning of a work
and then sustains this mood throughout. However, sometimes the mood of the work changes dramatically.

MORAL: A moral is a lesson which is taught by a literary work. A fable usually ends with a moral that is directly
stated. A poem, novel, short story or an essay often suggests a moral that is not directly stated. Moral must be drawn by the
reader based on other elements in the work.

MOTIVATION: A motivation is a reason that explains or partially explains a character’s thoughts, feelings,
actions or speech. Characters are often motivated by needs, such as food and shelter. They are also motivated by feelings ,
such as fear, love and pride.

THEME: A theme is a central message, concern or purpose in a literary work. A theme can usually be expressed as
a generalization or general statement about people or about life. The theme of a work is not a summary of its plot. the theme
is the central idea that the writer communicates. A theme may be stated Directly by the writer, although this is unusual.
Instead most themes are not directly stated but are implied. When the theme is implied, the reader must figure out what the
theme, by looking carefully at what the work reveals about people or about life.