The Definition of LiteratureBrittany GeorgeDr. Albert Turner, Jr. English Composition IIAugust 19, 2010The Definition of LiteratureLiterature is composed of various types of written works. There are several categories that fall under Literature such as major forms of literature, genres of literature, literature media, and literary techniques. However, the two most important literary categories are fiction and non-fiction. Literature is a very broad term, which requires specification of the various categories when spoken upon. The following is a brief summary of the versatile styles that literature contains.
First and foremost, excellent word usage, grammar, and syntax is key in every category of literature. The major forms of literature are novel, poem, drama, short story, and novella. A novel is a long narrative essay. A poem is a form of literary art that is expressed rhythmically in a written or oral form. Drama is the specific mode of fiction literature represented in performance such as theater for example.
A short story is a work of fiction written in prose. A novella is considered a short story novel. Although there are specific literary forms that are mainly fiction or non-fiction, all literature categories can be labeled as fiction or non-fiction.
Secondly, the genres of literature consist of epic, lyric, drama, romance, satire, tragedy, comedy, and tragicomedy. These genres can be sub-divided into oral and written literary genres. An epic is a lengthy narrative poem. A lyric is a form of poetry with rhyming schemes that express personal and emotional feelings.
Drama remains as a mode of fiction literature. Romance is a style of heroic prose. Satire is the use of irony, sarcasm or ridicule but meant to be humorous in a sense. Tragedy is a dramatic composition that involves death or suffering as an example. Comedy is also a dramatic composition of humor and amusement. Tragicomedy is a dramatic composition as well combining both tragedy and comedy.
Thirdly, literature media involves performance genres such as theatrical and musical and the circus is another type of performance. Literature media also consist of books such as magazines, journals, newspapers, books sold in a book store and also books that are for rent at a library. Lastly, the literary techniques are prose and verse.
Prose is the ordinary form of written or spoken language. Opposed to prose, verse is found in poems which are metrical and prose comprises full, grammatical words. In conclusion, Literature is a very diverse subject that can formulate a passion for creative writing, critical thinking and reading and also provide an abundance of literary knowledge to an individual. Bibliography Literature from Wikipedia, the free enclyclopedia. 10 Aug.
2010, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc, 18 Aug. 2010,
