NNF - Elements of Narrative Nonfiction: The Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir Lesson

Elements of Narrative Nonfiction: The Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir

Narrative Nonfiction and the Novel

Over the next nine weeks, you will choose a narrative nonfiction novel and read the novel throughout the course of this class. There will be checkpoints for items you will be turning in along the way, and you will be using the information you learn in each module to understand your chosen novel in a more meaningful way. Please make sure you read diligently throughout the course. When you complete the reading, you will write an essay dealing with an issue in your novel.  Choose a narrative nonfiction novel from the list below and begin reading:

  • Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
  • Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
  • All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg
  • The Color Purple by Alice Walker
  • Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt
  • Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
  • A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Types of Narrative Nonfiction

Remember that nonfiction is based upon facts and reality, and narrative nonfiction does include facts and reality. Whenever you read a story or watch a movie based on facts or someone's life, you are experiencing narrative nonfiction.

Narrative nonfiction appears in a variety of forms, and they each have specific names and characteristics. View the four different types of nonfiction texts you will learn about in this module:

Forms of Narrative Nonfiction- Historical Nonfiction: A narrative story based on true facts or real people but include some fictional characters or situations. Biography: An account of a person's life, written by another person. Autobiography: An account of a person's life, written by that person. Memoir: A record of a specific event or experience, written by a person having intimate knowledge of the event or experience and based on personal observation.

Forms of Narrative Nonfiction 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elements of Nonfiction

Each type of nonfiction has certain characteristics and purposes. View the video below to learn details about these various types of nonfiction:

 

 

Note that two other types of narrative nonfiction writing can appear in the form of literature, as well: the diary and the journal. Although diaries and journals share certain characteristics, they do have differences. You might be familiar with The Diary of Anne Frank which details a young girl's private thoughts and experiences about hiding out during the Holocaust.

View the definitions below in order to understand the differences between a diary and a journal:

Narrative Nonfiction Elements Learning Object

After reviewing the types of nonfiction in this module, practice your new knowledge below:

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