Genre

What is genre?

Genre: The major category into which a literary work fits.

Genre is important as it shapes a story's themes and corresponding analysis. It can also give you a good idea of background. 

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What are some different categories of genre?

Classic

🎆 Classic works are noteworthy for their complexity and historical relevance. Transcending time, these great works appear on the syllabus for most English classes. You'll read a few yourself in AP Lit!

• 🎇  ex: Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina and War and Peace

Fable

🎆 Fables are short stories that convey a moral. Most include animals as the main subject.

• 🎇 ex: The Tortoise and the Hare

Folktale

🎆 Folktales are stories spread by word of mouth. Most originate in popular culture.

• 🎇 ex:  Goldilocks and the Three Bears and Jack and the Beanstalk

Legend

🎆 Legends are semi-true stories that hold symbolism and meaning for the culture they originated from. Based on truth or historic facts, they add mythical qualities.

• 🎇 ex: Robin Hood

Myth

🎆 Myths concern a hero, and describe natural phenomena. They usually involve historical events and supernatural beings.

• 🎇 ex: The Odyssey and The Iliad by Homer.

Science Fiction

🎆 Science fiction is imaginative yet based on science. It uses scientific principles to support its plot-lines and themes.  

• 🎇 ex: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and The Giver by Lois Lowry.

Additional Resources

• 🎥 Have questions, check out this video with Student Q and As for AP Lit
• 🎥 Make sure to watch this AP Lit Final Review Video

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