Genres

A category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized

by a particular style, form, or content
POETRY

ABC
A poem that has five lines and creates a mood, picture, or feeling. Lines 1 through 4
are made up of words, phrases or clauses while the first word of each line is in
alphabetical order. Line 5 is one sentence long and begins with any letter.

Acrostic
Poetry that certain letters, usually the first in each line form a word or message
when read in a sequence.

Ballad
A poem that tells a story similar to a folk tale or legend which often has a repeated
refrain.

Ballade
Poetry which has three stanzas of seven, eight or ten lines and a shorter final stanza
of four or five. All stanzas end with the same one line refrain.

Blank verse
A poem written in unrhymed iambic pentameter and is often unobtrusive. The iambic
pentameter form often resembles the rhythms of speech

Bio
A poem written about one self's life, personality traits, and ambitions.

Cinquain
Poetry with five lines. Line 1 has one word (the title). Line 2 has two words that
describe the title. Line 3 has three words that tell the action. Line 4 has four words
that express the feeling, and line 5 has one word which recalls the title

Classicism
Poetry which holds the principles and ideals of beauty that are characteristic of Greek
and Roman art, architecture, and literature.

Couplet
This type of poem is two lines which may be rhymed or unrhymed

Dramatic monologue
A type of poem which is spoken to a listener. The speaker addresses a specific topic
while the listener unwittingly reveals details about him/herself.

Elegy
 A sad and thoughtful poem about the death of an individual.

Epic
An extensive, serious poem that tells the story about a heroic figure.

Free verse (vers libre)

Poetry written in either rhyme or unrhymed lines that have no set fixed metrical
pattern

Iambic pentameter
One short syllable followed by one long one five sets in a row. Example: la-LAH la-
LAH la-LAH la-LAH la-LAH. Used extensively in sonnets.

Narrative
A poem that tells a story.

Ode
A lengthy lyric poem typically of a serious or meditative nature and having an
elevated style and formal stanza structure

Pastoral
A poem that depicts rural life in a peaceful, romanticized way.

Quatrain
A stanza or poem consisting of four lines. Lines 2 and 4 must rhyme while having a
similar number of syllables.

Rhyme
A rhyming poem has the repetition of the same or similar sounds of two or more
words, often at the end of the line.

Romanticism
A poem about nature and love while having emphasis on the personal experience.

Shakespearean
A 14-line sonnet consisting of three quatrains of abab cdcd efef followed by a
couplet. Shakespearean sonnets generally use iambic pentameter.

Sonnet
A lyric poem that consists of 14 lines which usually have one or more conventional
rhyme schemes.

Verse
A single metrical line of poetry.
 Drama
Tragedy- a play written in a serious, sometimes impressive or elevated style, in which things go wrong
and cannot be set right except at great cost or sacrifice. Aristotle said that tragedy should purge our
emotions by evoking pity and fear (or compassion and awe) in us, the spectators.

The tragic pattern: 1. a theme of fatal passion (excluding love) as a primary motive

2. an outstanding personality as center of conflict (classical tragedy demanded a

“noble” character)

3. a vital weakness within the hero’s character (his tragic flaw which precipitates the
tragedy)

4. the conflict within the hero is the source of tragedy. However, since Nietzsche,
the tragic flaw is often found to be in the universe itself, or in man’s relationship to
it, rather than in the hero himself.

Comedy- a play written in a kindly or humorous, perhaps bitter or satiric vein, in which the problems or
difficulties of the characters are resolved satisfactorily, if not for all characters, at least from the point of
view of the audience. Low characters as opposed to noble; characters not always changed by the action
of the play; based upon observation of life. Comedy and tragedy are concerned more with character,
whereas farce and melodrama are concerned more with plot.

Melodrama- a play in which the characters are types rather than individuals, the story and situations
exaggerated to the point of improbability or sensationalism and the language and emotion over-
emphasized

Farce- a comedy in which story, character, and especially situations are exaggerated to the point of
improbability; the situation begins with a highly improbable premise, but when that is accepted
everything that follows is completely logical. Fast moving; uses such theatrical devices as duplications,
reversals, repetitions, surprises, disguises, chance encounters, often many doors and closets.

Tragic Comedy or Drama- a play with the sincerity and earnestness of tragedy but without its inevitability
of impending disaster, and with the kindly and tolerant attitude of comedy but without its underlying
spirit of humour; uses tense situations and moments of extreme conflict, but the tragedy is averted and
transcended.
Other kinds of plays- 1.Classical tragic-comedy; noble characters but happy ending.

2. Classical comic-tragedy; low characters but ends badly

3. Satire
4. Vaudeville
5. Mime
6. Propaganda plays (or didactic drama)

The history of the drama (dramatic literature) might be seen as a constant alteration between the two
poles of the classic mode and the romantic mode.

The history of theatre (performance of drama) might be seen as a constant alteration between the two
poles of stylized presentation and realistic representation. Below is one interpretation of the relative
positions of certain artistic movements in the theatre on a continuum between theatricality and realism:

Use of dramatic devices: irony, foreshadowing, suspense, surprises

Language: realistic, heroic, archaic, poetic, incantatory, orghast

Setting: period of style

o scene changes or changes within single set as play progresses

o mood
o essential scenic elements
o symbolism

Novel
Adventure fiction: stories in which characters are involved in dangerous and/or exhilarating exploits
Allegory: a story using symbolism to express truths about the human condition
Black comedy: a story in which the humor derives from the misfortunes and/or reproachable
behavior of characters
Comedy: a story with elements and situations intended to amuse
Comedy-drama: a story with both humorous and serious elements
Comedy of errors (farce): a story involving energetic action revolving around humorous
predicaments and coincidences
Comedy of manners: a story that mocks class pretensions and/or prejudices
Crime fiction: stories based on the commission and/or investigation of wrongdoing
Detective fiction: stories in which the protagonist investigates a crime
Epic: originally a long poem celebrating the exploits of a factual or fictitious hero, but now applied to
prose works on the same theme as well
Fantasy fiction: stories involving imaginary beings in the real world or in an alternate reality and
assuming suspension of disbelief about magic and/or supernatural powers
Fictional autobiography: a story purporting to be a first-person account of someone’s life
Fictional biography: a story structured to resemble a factual life story
Horror fiction: stories incorporating supernatural and/or inexplicable elements and intended to
arouse fear and dread
Melodrama: a story that emphasizes action over characterization and features exaggeratedly
dramatic plot elements
Mystery fiction: stories that detail the solution of a crime or other wrongdoing
Picaresque: an episodically structured story featuring a rogue or an antihero as the protagonist
Parody: a story mocking the pretensions or weaknesses of a particular author,
style, or genre
Romance: a love story; also a tale taking place in a distant time and place and involving adventure
with often supernatural or mysterious elements
Romantic comedy: a lighthearted story detailing a romance and its complications
Satire: a story that pokes fun at human shortcomings such as arrogance, greed, and vanity
Thriller: a dramatic story punctuated with action, adventure, and suspense
Tragedy: a story with a catastrophic and/or unfortunate outcome
Tragicomedy: a story with both humorous and heartbreaking aspects
Travelogue: a story with a plot centering on a significant amount of travel

Short Story
What is a short story?
A short story is a work of fictional prose. Its characters may be loosely based on real-life people, and
its plot may be inspired by a real-life event; but overall more of the story is “made-up” than real.
Sometimes, the story can be completely made-up. Short stories may be literary, or they may conform
to genre standards (i.e., a romance short story, a science-fiction short story, a horror story, etc.). A
short story is a work that the writer holds to be fiction (i.e., historical fiction based on real events, or a
story that is entirely fiction).