Unit 6: Literary Nonfiction
CHS English I
April 22, 2013
Types of Nonfiction
1. ESSAY: examines and discusses a focused
topic, often including the writer’s personal
viewpoints.
2. ARTICLE: provides information about a topic,
person, or event.
3. SPEECH: written to be read aloud; presents a
topic and may persuade, inform, explain, or
entertain.
Types of Essays
1. NARRATIVE essays tell the stories of real-life
events. Examples include autobiographies and
memoirs.
2. EXPOSITORY essays inform or explain. Examples
include analytical essays and research reports.
3. PERSUASIVE essays present reasons and
evidence to convince the reader to act or think
in a certain way. Examples include editorials and
political speeches.
Types of Essays
4. DESCRIPTIVE essays use details related to the
senses to create mental images for the
reader. Examples include character sketches
and scientific observations.
5. REFLECTIVE essays express the writer’s
thoughts and feelings in response to a
personal experience or to an idea.
Important Elements:
• Style: the way an author uses language; reflects personality.
– Examples: formal v. slang language; use of figurative language; word
choice; sentence patterns
• Tone: the author’s attitude toward both the subject and the
audience; you can “hear” tone; often can be described in one
word.
• Perspective: the viewpoint or opinion of the author. Bias
occurs when the author chooses a particular side in an
argument.
• Purpose: the author’s reason for writing. (Persuade,
entertain, inform, etc.).
Check Your Understanding
1.
Formal, friendly, or casual
a)
b)
2.
Encouraging polite behavior
a)
b)
3.
Persuasive
Narrative
Explaining how Congress votes
a)
b)
5.
Essay
Bias
Retelling a historical event
a)
b)
4.
Style
Descriptive
Expository
Reflective
Comic, mysterious, or doubtful
a)
b)
Tone
Article
Unit Vocabulary:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Copy down the term and definition.
Use FIVE words in a sentence.
(5 sentences).
Epicenter: focal or central point
Palpable: able to be touched or felt; tangible
Entrenched: securely established; unmovable
Bravado: false courage or confidence
Lexicon: the special vocabulary of a particular subject
Despotic: like an absolute ruler or tyrant
Censure: strong disapproval
Droll: funny in an odd or dry way
Abolitionist: person in favor of doing away with slavery
Raillery: good-natured teasing
Hallowed: sacred
Degenerate: grow worse
Creed: statement of belief
Renegade: disloyal; traitorous
Feisty: full of spirit; energetic
“Before Hip-Hop
Was Hip-Hop”
Narrative/Reflective Essay, p. 391
by Rebecca Walker
(b. 1969)
“Before Hip-Hop Was Hip-Hop”
• This essay discusses the impact of hip-hop
music and culture of the author’s life.
• She addresses the idea of how young people
created their own culture in the form of the
hip-hop movement.
• She suggests that this culture was not a
passing fad, that it was a genuine expression
of “new cosmopolitan sense of solidarity
among urban American teens.”
“Before Hip-Hop Was Hip-Hop”: Review
RESTATE all questions in your answers. I should be able to know what
question was asked without looking at this slide.
1. What did you enjoy most about Walker’s descriptions of hip-hop culture
during her youth? Explain in 2-3 sentences.
2. In what specific ways did hip-hop help Walker and her friends overcome
their differences? What other benefits did hip-hop provide to young
people in that time and place? Answer in 2-3 sentences.
3. What differences does Walker find between the music of her youth and
today’s hip-hop? Is this judgment fair or biased? Explain in 2-3
sentences.
4. What strategies do teenagers use today to express themselves? Explain
in 2-3 sentences.
5. TONE: Is the tone of Walker’s essay personal or impersonal? What other
adjectives would you use to describe her tone?
List 2-3 specific examples from the text to support your conclusions.
from A Lincoln Preface
Biographical Writing, p. 452
by Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)
from A Lincoln Preface
• This is an excerpt (or small section) of Carl
Sandburg’s monumental biography of Lincoln.
• This biography is still considered one of the
most important examinations of Lincoln’s life.
• Sandburg provides the audience with a series
of anecdotes that show Lincoln’s humor,
determination, and political skills.
• Carl Sandburg is one of America’s most
influential writers (biographer, poet, etc.).
from A Lincoln Preface: Review
RESTATE all questions in your answers. I should be able to know what
question was asked without looking at this slide.
1. Which story about Lincoln interested you the most? Explain why in 2-3
sentences.
2. To whom did Lincoln refer as “the little woman who wrote the book that
made this great war”?
3. According to Sandburg, what personal qualities make Lincoln a great
historical figure, “an American possession,”? Explain in 2-3 sentences.
4. Do you think Lincoln was justified in violating the constitution to save the
Union? Why or why not? (2-3 sentences).
5. Look at the painting of Lincoln on p. 452 (Lincoln Proclaiming
Thanksgiving, Dean Cornwell). Does this painting portray Lincoln as a
man of great power? Explain in 5 sentences.
“I Have A Dream”
Persuasive Speech, p. 494
Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968)
“I Have A Dream”
• In this speech, MLK challenges Americans to
live up to the national ideals of equality and
justice.
• MLK was the most charismatic and important
leader of the Civil Rights Movement.
• At 35, MLK became the youngest, and only the
third black man, to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
• King was assassinated on April 4, 1968.
“I Have A Dream”: Review
RESTATE all questions in your answers. I should be able to know what
question was asked without looking at this slide.
1. In this persuasive speech, what is Dr. King trying to persuade his
audience to think or do? What persuasive/rhetorical devices does
he use to convince the audience?
2. What feelings does Dr. King’s speech stir in you? Explain in 2-3
sentences.
3. In what ways does Dr. King appeal to emotion in his speech? In
what ways does he appeal to reason (knowledge)? Explain in 2-3
sentences.
4. How would you describe Dr. King’s expression when he gives this
speech? Explain in 2-3 sentences.
5. Why do you think this speech is considered one of the greatest in
modern history? Is it worthy of this standing? Explain your
thoughts in 2-3 sentences.
“I Have A Dream”: Review: 4/6
RESTATE all questions in your answers. I should be able to know what
question was asked without looking at this slide.
1. In this persuasive speech, what is Dr. King trying to persuade his
audience to think or do? What persuasive/rhetorical devices does he
use to convince the audience?
2. What feelings does Dr. King’s speech stir in you? Explain in 2-3
sentences.
3. In what ways does Dr. King appeal to emotion in his speech? In what
ways does he appeal to reason (knowledge)? Explain in 2-3 sentences.
4. Why do you think this speech is considered one of the greatest in
modern history? Is it worthy of this standing? Explain your thoughts in
4-5 sentences.
5. How would you describe Dr. King’s expression/diction/performance
when he gives this speech? How is listening to, and/or, viewing the
speech differ from reading it silently? Explain in 4-5 sentences.
“Go Deep to the Sewer”
Humorous, Reflective Essay, p. 525
by Bill Cosby (b. 1937)
“Go Deep to the Sewer”
• Bill Cosby grew up in a poor, underprivileged
neighborhood in Philadelphia.
• He always had a knack for finding humor in
difficult situations and would regularly
perform comedy routines for his mother and
other family members.
• This essay describes the games Cosby and his
friends played as children, with a tone that is
both warm-hearted and self-mocking.
“Go Deep to the Sewer”
RESTATE all questions in your answers. I should be able to know what
question was asked without looking at this slide.
1. How did Cosby describe his physical stature as a child? How did
these physical limitation affect his skills at various sports?
2. What neighborhood features were part of the “diamond” on
which Cosby and his friends played stickball?
3. What does Cosby’s description of the playing space say about the
people who live in his neighborhood? What does it say about the
safety of the games that these children played?
4. What does Cosby mean when he says, “the essence of
childhood…is play”? Do you agree with his statement? Explain in
3-5 sentences.
5. List and explain AT LEAST three examples of hyperbole in the
essay.