Senior High School Department

LITERARY GENRES
HUMANITIES- It is the quality or state of human being. It is the study about human culture, history, behavior etc.

LITERATURE- It comes from the Latin word “litera” which means letters. A faithful reproduction of man’s
manifold experiences blended into one harmonious expression

21ST CENTURY LITERATURE- All literary works written and published at the latter part of the 21st century
(from 2001 onwards). These works are often characterized as gender sensitive, technologically alluding,
culturally pluralistic, operates on the extreme reality or extreme fiction.

LITERARY GENRE- It is category of literary composition determined by literary technique, tone, content, or
even length. The distinctions among genres and categories are flexible and loosely defined, often with
subgroups.
A. FICTION: It is a name for stories not entirely factual, but at least partially shaped, made up, imagined. It
creates illusion of the reality. It comes from the Latin word “fictio” means to invent or make up.
B. NONFICTION: It is a genre of writing that uses literary styles and techniques to create factually accurate
narratives.

ELEMENTS OF FICTION AND NONFICTION:

1. Plot
2. Characters
3. Point of View
4. Theme
5. Setting
C. DRAMA: A piece of art that is made in the sense that it meets the requirements of theatre. It is stageable,
can be acted with good effect and pleases the audience.
ELEMENTS:
1. Literary
2. Performance
3. Technical
D. POETRY: This is a rhythmical composition of words expressing an attitude, designed to surprise and
delight, and arouse an emotional response.
ELEMENTS:
1. Stanza
2. Tone and Mood
3. Theme
4. Persona/Speaker
5. Symbolism

“Acads before Lakads, Aral before Walwal

Readings and Writings before Feelings” -Zookal
Prepared: Ms. Ma. Rebecca O. Roquid
Humanities Department
 FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE: FIGURES OF SPEECH
FIGURE OF SPEECH: It is a figurative language in which words are used out of their literal meaning or out of
their ordinary use. A figure of speech is a phrase or word having different meanings than its literal meanings. It
conveys meaning by identifying or comparing one thing to another, which has connotation or meaning familiar
to the audience. That is why it is helpful in creating vivid rhetorical effect.

BASIC FORMS OF FIGURES OF SPEECH

SIMILE: It is a stated comparison (formed with “like” or “as”) between two fundamentally dissimilar things
that have certain qualities in common.
Examples:
 The audience listened to his spellbinding speech as quietly as mice.
 Never mind I’ll find someone like you..

METAPHOR: It is a figure of speech that is an implied comparison between two unlike things that have
something in common.
Examples:
 She was fairly certain that life was a fashion show.
 He pleaded for her forgiveness but Janet’s heart was cold iron.

PERSONIFICATION: It endows human qualities or abilities to inanimate objects or abstractions.

Examples:
 The shadow of the moon danced on the lake.
 The wind is howling like a swirling storm inside.

HYPERBOLE: It is the use of exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis or exaggerated effect.
Examples:
 Your suitcase weighs a ton!
 The old man was older than the Himalayas.

ALLITERATION: It is when an initial consonant is repeated.

Examples:
 “His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe”

SYNECDOCHE: It is a figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part.
Examples:
 His parents bought him a new set of wheels.
 I got the eye of a tiger.

ALLUSION: It is a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or
political significance. It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers.
Examples:
 Don’t act like a Romeo in front of her.
 The rise in poverty will unlock the Pandora’s box of crimes.
“Acads before Lakads, Aral before Walwal
Readings and Writings before Feelings” -Zookal
Prepared: Ms. Ma. Rebecca O. Roquid
Humanities Department