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Literary Genre
The study of genre is not an exact science. Some texts may belong in more than one genre. For example: Romeo and Juliet is a drama, a tragedy, and an Elizabethan play. The idea of genre is open to discussion and there is good reason to discuss genre. Understanding genre will help you know what to expect from a text based on its genre; it will also help you notice when an author is playing with your expectations. Wouldn't you like to be in on the joke? First, you must learn some basics:
Main Genres and Subgenres
Some consider these to be the main genres of writing: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, and folklore. Every piece of writing can fall into one of these categories. Each main genre has a group of subgenres. Each subgenre has as set of characteristics that you must learn in order to identify them. This list does not contain all of the possible subgenres, but it should give you a pretty thorough overview.
- Fiction: stories that come from the author's imagination.
- Historical Fiction: based on a person or event from history.
- Science Fiction: dealing with aliens, the distant future, or advanced technology.
- Fantasy: containing monsters, magic, or other supernatural elements.
- Realistic Fiction: a story that could have happened, but didn't.
- Nonfiction: writing that is true or factual.
- Informational Writing: provides information on a topic.
- Persuasive Writing: attempts to influence the reader.
- Autobiography: the story of one's life told by oneself.
- Biography: the story of one's life told by another.
- Drama: writing that is meant to be acted on a stage (a play).
- Comedy: has a happy ending.
- Tragedy: ends in death and sadness.
- Poetry: writing that is concerned with the beauty of language
- Folklore: stories handed down through speech from generation to generation.
- Fairy Tale: a story with magic, monsters, and/or talking animals (like fiction / fantasy, but part of the oral tradition).
- Fable: a very short story that has a moral or life lesson; usually has talking animals as main characters.
- Myth: has gods or goddesses and often accounts for how something came to be.
- Legend: an exaggerated story about something that may have been real at one time.
- Tall Tale: stories set in the Wild West; the main character's strengths, skills, or size have been exaggerated and the tone is funny.
Genres help readers and writers form and defy expectations.
Genre Worksheets
Genre Worksheet 1
Here is a fun worksheet to help students review genre. Read the descriptions of the texts. Look for details in each passage that reveal the genre. Write the genre and subgenre on the lines. Students also explain their answers. Suggested reading level for this text: Grade 6-10.
Genre Worksheet 2
Here is another fun worksheet to give students practice with literary genre. This one has 4 pages and 17 problems. Students read descriptions of texts. Then choose the genre and subgenre in which the story belongs. Then they explain how they got their answer. Suggested reading level: Grade 5-9
Genre Worksheet 3
Here is another great worksheet to help students master literary genre. This one is double-sided and has 8 problems. Students read descriptions of texts written for a variety of purposes. Then they determine the genre and subgenre based on the provided details and explain their answers. Suggested reading level: Grade 5-9
Genre Worksheet 4
Here's another great worksheet to give practice with genre. This one features nine practice problems. Students identify the genre and subgenres of a variety of texts based on clues in the description. Then they explain their answers, which helps hone critical thinking and composition skills. Suggested reading level for this text: Grade 4-8.
Genre Worksheet 5
Here is yet another genre worksheet. This one features nine more problems giving your students practice identifying literary genres. Students identify the genres based on details and then explain their answers. Suggested reading level for this text: Grade 4-8.
MORE GENRE WORKSHEETS
Genre Activities
Genre Lesson 1
Looking for a PowerPoint slide show to help your students understand genre? This genre lesson will help you teach your students about fiction, nonfiction, drama, folklore, and their various subgenres. This lesson includes a review activity at the end.
Genre Crossword Puzzle Creator Project
Here is a fun, student-centered project on literary genre and subgenre. Students will create a genre crossword puzzle. In doing so, they will review the definitions for key genre terms. The project file includes directions, rubric, and the crossword grid sheet.
Genre Newspaper Project
Here is a fun, student-centered project to help students review literary genre. Students create a newspaper with eight articles written in different genres and subgenres. The project sheet includes directions, an example, and a scoring rubric.
Genre Book Review Activity
Here's another fun activity to help students master genre. Students examine books in small groups and discuss the genre and subgenres of each text. After coming to a consensus, students write their answers down on this sheet. You provide your own texts. (Note: You have to provide your own books for this activity.)
Genre Movie Posters Project
Here's another fun activity to help students master genre. Students will create three movie posters. Each poster will feature a movie from a different subgenre. They can be real movies or imagined. Students can learn and review genre while they showcase their creativity! This project sheet contains directions, an example, and a scoring rubric.
Genre Class Practice Activity 1
Students need practice with many text types to master genre. This activity will give your whole class practice. Project the practice problems on the board. Have students solve the problems and discuss them in small groups or as a whole. This activity has 5 practice problems.
Genre Quiz 1
Here's a matching quiz to evaluate students on their understanding of genre and subgenre terms. Students match the definitions to the terms and answer multiple choice questions.
Genre Piranha: Review Game
Here is a browser game to help students with literary genre. Students play as a fish trying to get to a light house and avoid larger fish. When they get hit they have to answer a question about literary genre. There are literally hundreds of questions. Students will have so much fun playing. They won't even realize that they are mastering genre.
MORE GENRE ACTIVITIES
Genre
Common Core State Standards
Genre Anchor Standard
R.9 - Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.RL.K.9 - With prompting and support, compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in familiar stories.
RL.1.9 - Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in stories.
RL.2.9 - Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by different authors or from different cultures.
RL.3.9 - Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters (e.g., in books from a series).
RL.4.9 - Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics (e.g., opposition of good and evil) and patterns of events (e.g., the quest) in stories, myths, and traditional literature from different cultures.
RL.5.9 - Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.
RL.6.9 - Compare and contrast texts in different forms or genres (e.g., stories and poems; historical novels and fantasy stories) in terms of their approaches to similar themes and topics.
Click to VIEW Grade Level Standards for R.9
R.5 - Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
RL.K.5 - Recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems).
RL.1.5 - Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.
RL.4.5 - Explain major differences between poems, drama, and prose, and refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama (e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text.
RL.7.5 - Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to its meaning.
RL.8.5 - Compare and contrast the structure of two or more texts and analyze how the differing structure of each text contributes to its meaning and style.
RL.K.5 - Recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems).
RL.1.5 - Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.
RL.4.5 - Explain major differences between poems, drama, and prose, and refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama (e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text.
RL.7.5 - Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to its meaning.
RL.8.5 - Compare and contrast the structure of two or more texts and analyze how the differing structure of each text contributes to its meaning and style.
Click to VIEW Grade Level Standards for R.5
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justus
/ February 4, 2020Wow! this is awesome, thank you so much God bless you for the wonderful insight. can I ask a question, please Which literary genre is found in Book of Leviticus?
Meera
/ July 11, 2019Wonderful work and so generous of you to share.
raji k
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tiwen
/ April 20, 2019wonderfull
marc perdomo
/ September 7, 2017thank u much help
John
/ June 19, 2017This is the best website explaining genres, it was so good I had to say thanks
Aygul Rzayeva
/ May 20, 2017Hi there. I want to ask you 2 questions.1) what is genre of a story about a girl who meets the president Abraham Lincoln. 2) what is the genre of a text that explains a process. please help. you site is really perfect!
Mr. Morton
/ May 31, 20171. It sounds like historical fiction
2. Informational writing
Dinh Tho
/ November 27, 2017Hi Mr. Morton,
I am Vietnamese. I am doing research on genres of reading texts. Can you help me?
Mr. Morton
/ December 13, 2017How can I help?
Aubrey
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Natasha
/ March 18, 2017Hi there, I would like to say, it is a very good site and very helpfull. But I still have some questions. Religious books like Bible, Torah, and Quran what are they and where would they go in your list of genre or where would parable go. And what is the difference between parable and fable.
Thank you
Mr. Morton
/ March 22, 2017Great question. The genre of religious texts is highly debatable. I’m not going to enter that debate. I will tell you, however, that both parables and fables teach lessons with short, succinct stories. The difference is that fables generally involve talking, anthropomorphized animals and parables usually do not. Also, the moral of a fable is clearly stated at the end. Parables usually ask readers to infer the message.
Best wishes!
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Mr. Morton
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/ May 15, 2012wow thanks soooo much this made my homwork so much easier i’m sooo not good with genre’s or subgenre’s!!!!! it took me 5 minutes on my homework.
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