An overview and examination of the different types of non-fiction

1
Non-Fiction

• An overview and examination of the different
  types of non-fiction

2
Non-fiction Overview

• What is non-fiction???
• Non-fiction is writing about real topics
• Non-fiction is about actual people, events, and
  places
• It is unlike fiction, obviously, which is about
  imagined people, worlds, and events.
• Non-fiction includes journalism, textbooks,
  essays, pamphlets, journals, letters, memoirs,
  and biographies, just to name a few examples

3
Non-fiction Overview

• Sometimes it is purely factual, but sometimes
  authors may also insert their personal opinions
• This is why it is important to read non-fiction
  critically, and evaluate the authors intentions,
  messages and support.

4
Elements of Non-fiction

• There are four main elements of non-fiction
• 1) Purpose
• 2) Organization/Structure
• 3) Tone
• 4) Style
• Lets look at each in more depth.

5
1st Element Purpose

• Purpose is essentially the authors reason for
  writing the piece of non-fiction.
• Is he or she simply informing the audience about
  a topic, or is he or she trying to convince the
  audience of something too?
• There are two things in particular you should
  consider with the authors purpose
• Audience who is the author trying to reach?
• Bias does the author have a clear opinion?

6
2nd Element Organization/Structure

• A piece of writing typically has a particular
  structure or organization
• Examples chronological, cause and Effect,
  definition, analysis, problem-solution,
  compare/contrast, Narrative, etc.
• Often a piece of writing will contain several
  types of organization within it

7
3rd Element Tone

• Tone is basically the authors attitude towards
  his or her subject or the audience
• Tones can be sarcastic, accusatory, skeptical,
  etc.
• We will examine tone separately later

8
4th Element Style

• An authors style is the particular way he or she
  writes
• Style can consist of, but is not limited to,
  diction, tone, imagery, concrete details,
  figurative language, perspective, and support

9
1st Type Expository Non-fiction

• Expository non-fiction is generally used to
  inform an audience about a particular topic
• Can also be used to describe or explain something
  (ideas, terms, people, events)
• When writing this type of non-fiction, you cannot
  assume the audience has any prior knowledge
• Should not include much if any bias

10
Expository, cont.

• Different types of expository writing
• Description describes a topic
• Sequence or process-lists items in a numerical or
  chronological order (how-to)
• Comparison Comparing two items
• Cause/Effect list causes and the effects
• Problem/Solution

11
Expository, cont.

• Facts, statistics, quotes, etc. are important as
  support in describing a particular topic
• Should include a strong introduction to grab the
  readers attention

12
Persuasive Non-Fiction

• English 9 Non-fiction Unit

13
Purpose

• The purpose of persuasive non-fiction is to
  persuade the reader to believe a certain opinion
• Its important to 1) identify the authors
  opinion/position, 2) then identify the arguments
  they use, and 3) finally evaluate the strength of
  their arguments.
• The author should have support to back up their
  ideas (stats, facts, quotes, etc.)

14
Bias

• Persuasive non-fiction will include bias and
  opinion
• It is your job to find it and evaluate the
  authors arguments
• Do not confuse facts with truths
• A truth is an idea believed by many yet cannot be
  proven
• Ex. dogs are almost always more friendly than
  cats

15
Persuasive Appeals

• Aristotle the father of rhetoric (study of using
  language (written or spoken))
• He articulated three persuasive appeals
• Appeals to Logic
• Appeals to Emotion
• Appeals to Character

16
Appeals to Logic

• Trying to appeal to peoples sense of reason by
  using support statements to support their claim
• Using evidence, facts, statistics, definitions,
  quotes from experts, logical arguments and valid
  reasons
• Aim for the brain

17
Appeals to Emotion

• Trying to appeal to an audiences emotions or
  passions in order to persuade them
• The author/speaker will try to make them happy,
  sad, outraged, etc. to get them to support their
  argument.
• They will mention issues that are important to
  the audience.
• They work because if someone becomes emotionally
  involved with a topic they will be more likely to
  support it.
• Aim for the heart

18
Appeals to Character

• The author is trying to demonstrate the strength
  of their character, in order to prove that they
  are a reliable source
• Showing the audience you are trustworthy

19
Examples of Persuasive Appeals

• Example 1 Buying a puppy, but its expensive
• Appeals to
• Logic Providing benefits of / reasons for owing
  a puppy
• Emotion
• look at how cute it is! (appeal to girls)
• Youll be popular with all the girls! (appeals
  to boys)
• Character History of successful breeds
• Certified as a pure bred dog

20
Examples of Persuasive Appeals, cont/

• Example 2 Selling a new car
• Appeals to
• Logic Highlighting gas mileage / safety
• Emotion Mentioning how cool the owner will look
  in a new car
• Character of the salesman / dealer good track
  record / awards

21
Example of Persuasive Non-fiction

• P.G. Sittenfeld Young Voters an Decide Their
  Future
• Assignment Identify the
• Purpose
• Organization
• Tone
• Style
• Is there any bias? If so, what is it?
• Which audience do you think the author is trying
  to reach?

22
Second Example Stephen King

• Now You Take Bambi
• Examine the purpose and the arguments King makes
• Also, evaluate his support and reasoning
• Is he biased?

23
Persuasive Techniques Propaganda

• Propaganda Propaganda is the misuse of
  information in order to persuade you of something
• Technically it is official government
  communications to the public that are designed to
  influence opinion. The information may be true or
  false, but it is always carefully selected for
  its political effect.
• It is most often found in politics, but it can
  also show up in advertising and journalism, among
  other places
• It is used to influence our thought and behavior
• It can be blatantly obvious or incredibly subtle

24
Propaganda, cont.

• When politicians, marketers and writers try to
  sway your opinion, you need to be on your guard
• Especially with propaganda, you need to be able
  to evaluate the authors message or argument to
  determine if it is valid or not

• With so much information out there, often we have
  to take mental short cuts to process it all
• Propagandists love these short cuts, because it
  allows them to manipulate their audience, by
  stirring emotions, taking advantage of our
  insecurities, and by using ambiguous language and
  faulty logic.
• If were not careful, they may influence our
  thought without us even knowing it

25
Propaganda in Animal Farm

• We saw propaganda when we studied Animal Farm it
  was something George Orwell wanted readers to be
  aware of
• The pigs use fear tactics when they threaten the
  return of Mr. Jones, preying upon the animals
  fears of Mr. Jones to keep them in line
• Squealer uses the phrase it has been proved by
  science to add legitimacy to his argument-this
  is the use of transfer
• Finally, when the pigs in charge talk about
  changing the animals rations, they use ambiguous
  language, speaking not of a reduction but a
  readjustment

26
Propaganda Techniques

• We are going to examine eight common propaganda
  techniques, though there are many others as well
• Much of this information has been taken from the
  following website http//www.propagandacritic.com
  

27
Transfer

• Think of the transfer technique as making false
  connections
• With transfer, propagandists will try to sway
  your opinion by carrying over the authority,
  sanction, and prestige of something we respect
  and revere to something they would have us
  respect

• Uses a lot of symbols to accomplish this
• Examples
• A commercial for a prescription drug claiming its
  effectiveness and safety have been proven
  through scientific research
• Placing a picture of an American flag on the
  packaging of a product-they must be patriotic!

28
Plain Folks

• When someone uses the plain folks technique,
  they are trying to make the audience believe that
  they are average Joes and their ideas are of the
  people
• It works (they hope) because people are more
  likely to accept the message if they think the
  speaker/writer is just like them

• Examples
• Think about politicians-they try to get votes by
  acting like average men and women, when in
  reality most of them are millionaires
• Bill Clinton ate at McDonalds Ronald Reagan
  often was pictured chopping wood

29
Euphemisms

• Euphemisms essentially equate to word games
• A euphemism is
• It aims to convince someone of an idea by using
  words that sugar coat or cover up unpleasant
  realities

• Often found in military language
• Civilian casualties in wartime collateral
  damage
• MX-Missile was named the peacekeeper

30
Glittering Generalities

• Some words have very fixed associations or
  emotions attached to them democracy,
  Christianity, patriotism, etc.
• When someone uses this technique, they use these
  cherished words to lower our resistance to their
  idea they hope we will hear those magic words
  and be sold without considering the idea itself

• Perhaps a politician wants us to give up certain
  liberties or freedoms-they know we will resist,
  but if they try to explain how patriotic it is
  to give them up, or how important is for our
  democracy, they hope they can sway our
  opinion-well think, well, I want to be
  patriotic, and I do love democracy, so Ill
  agree!

31
Bandwagon (Dont be left behind)

• The bandwagon technique tries to get us to do
  something because everyone else already is-we
  wouldnt want to get left behind!!
• Essentially it tries to get us to follow the
  crowd
• Peer pressure
• Speakers/writers will appeal to our common
  ties-appeal to us as Americans

• An advertisement for car insurance that claims
  two million people have already made the switch
• Political campaign- your neighbors support the
  cause-so should you!!

32
Testimonial

• Testimonial involves the use of celebrities or
  athletes to endorse a product
• If the person who is endorsing the product, idea,
  or politician is an expert in that field, there
  is no problem-the problem is when that person has
  no experience-and thus no expertise-in that area

• Any athlete and Wheaties-but do they really eat
  them??
• Athletes and anything they endorse-do they really
  use those products and therefore do they really
  know how good they are?
• Are they engineers, scientists, etc. who can tell
  us that the products live up to their claims?

33
Fear

• When someone tries to scare you into believing in
  an idea or a proposal, or when they try to scare
  you into buying a product, they are using the
  fear technique
• Preys on our fears and insecurities-offering
  what if scenarios and presenting us with the
  solution to prevent us from that scenario

• Examples
• Seatbelt commercials using footage of horrific
  car accidents to shock you into wearing seatbelts
• Jack in Lord of the Flies-you dont want the
  beast to come back, do you?
• Animal Farm-you dont want Mr. Jones to return,
  do you?

34
Name Calling

• The opposite of glittering generalities
• Name calling is the use of labeling someone with
  a name that has bad connotations or associations
  in order to get the audience to dismiss someone
  or something based on this words associations
  rather than actually examine the persons ideas
• This is done to ruin a reputation by linking
  someone to an unpopular idea or group

• Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s-those who held
  unpopular (though not necessarily bad) beliefs or
  ideas were labeled as communists
• This preyed upon peoples fear of communism-to
  link someone with communism was to suggest they
  were bad people
• Using terms like

35
Things to ask yourself when evaluating persuasive
messages

• What is it the author wants you to believe or do?
• What arguments or techniques does the author use
  to sway your opinion?
• Does the idea, proposal, or product still have
  merits when you consider it without the
  propaganda technique or persuasive appeal-or are
  they trying to mislead you?

36
Narrative Non-fiction

• The third and final type of non-fiction well
  discuss is narrative non-fiction
• Narrative non-fiction relates a personal story or
  narrative
• Usually shows a lesson the author has learned as
  a result of his or her experience
• Can include bias and opinion since its being
  told from the authors perspective

37
Narrative Non-fiction, cont.

• This type of non-fiction is very similar to
  fiction writing
• Often has characters (sometimes the author)
• Sometimes includes a conflict to be resolved
• Should have a strong introduction to grab the
  readers attention
• Conclusion might relate to the lesson learned-may
  contain an insight based on the authors
  experience
• Memoirs are the best example of narrative
  non-fiction

38
Tone in Non-fiction

• Tone is the authors attitude towards the subject
  or the audience
• As you can see from the handout on tone, there
  are many possible tones authors use.
• There are four components that often make up an
  authors tone diction, images, details, and
  sentence structure
• You can use the acronym D.I.D.S. to help you
  remember

39
Elements of Tone Diction

• Diction is the authors word choice
• An author will use certain words depending on his
  attitude towards the subject
• Denotation vs. Connotation
• Denotation is the words literal dictionary
  meaning
• Connotation is the words associations or
  suggestions-in other words, what associations
  come to mind when we hear a word
• Words can have a positive, neutral or negative
  connotation
• An example would be the word old, which is
  mostly neutral
• Think of some words with positive connotations to
  describe someone whos old
• Now think of some words with a negative
  connotation

40
Elements of Tone Images

• Images are any vivid appeals to understanding
  using the senses-images are the kinds of
  pictures, sounds, tastes, smells, etc. included
  to help the reader see and experience the
  text
• You can determine the authors attitude through
  the images he or she chooses to include
• What kinds of images would an author include if
  he or she were reviewing a restaurant?
• Sights
• Sounds
• Smells
• Tastes

41
Elements of Tone Details

• Depending on the purpose, an author will select
  specific details to include when writing a piece
  of non-fiction
• The author or speakers tone will depend on his
  or her purpose
• Consider for a moment that you were playing
  baseball with friends, and you hit a baseball
  that sailed through someones living room window.
• What details would you include if you were
  telling a friend about it?
• What if you were telling your parents?
• Authors of persuasive non-fiction will likely
  include or leave out certain details depending on
  their purpose

42
Elements of Tone Sentence Structure

• The fourth and final thing to consider when
  evaluating an authors tone is the sentence
  structure they use
• Sentence structure is the length and rhythm of
  the sentences they create
• Longer, rambling sentences will likely convey a
  dry, boring, or even gloomy tone
• Short, choppy sentences may suggest an upbeat or
  excited tone

43
Tone Sample Passages

• First read the excerpt from Edgar Allen Poes
  story, The Fall of the House of Usher
• How would you characterize the tone? How do the
  four elements of tone create such a tone?
• Next, consider the poem by Jack Prelutsky, Today
  is Very Boring
• What kind of tone do you notice here? How is it
  created?
• Article from The Onion
• Note the sarcastic tone-how do they get this
  effect?