NONFICTION•Writing that deals with

REAL people, places, and events.

•Opposite of Fiction

FACT and OPINION

FACTS

• Statements that can be proven true or false.

OPINIONS• Statements that

cannot be proven true or false.

• Based on an individual’s personal beliefs and feelings

FORMS OF NONFICTION

• Autobiography• Biography• Essay

• Informational article• Interview

Autobiography• Story of a person’s

life, written by that person.

• 1st person point of view

• Usually book length• Includes journals,

diaries, letters, and memoirs

In the beginning, because I felt, as only a young girl can feel it, all the pain of being an ugly duckling. I was not only timid, I was afraid. Afraid of almost everything, I think: of mice, of the dark, of imaginary dangers, of my own inadequacy. My chief objective as a girl was to do my duty.

-- Eleanor Roosevelt

What details in the paragraph help you understand what Eleanor Roosevelt felt and experienced? How is this an

example of autobiography?

• She felt she was ugly• That made her timid• She was very dutiful• She wanted the

approval of others• Uses the “I” subject

pronoun!!

Biography• Story of a person’s

life told by someone else

• In 3rd person point of view (he/she/they)

• The writer is called the biographer

• Same elements as fiction (conflict, setting, etc.)

Eleanor was born in a fine townhouse in Manhattan. Her family also owned an elegant mansion along the Hudson River, where they spent weekends and summers. As a child Eleanor went to fashionable parties. A servant took care of her and taught her to speak French. Her mother, the beautiful Anne Hall Roosevelt, wore magnificent jewels and fine clothing. Her father, Elliot Roosevelt, had his own hunting lodge and liked to sail and to play tennis and polo … The Roosevelt family, one of America’s oldest, wealthiest families, was respected and admired.

William Jay Jacobs, “Eleanor Roosevelt”

What do the details in the paragraph tell you about Eleanor Roosevelt’s life and background? How is this an example of

biography?

• Details of her home, family, and life

• Written by a different person about her

Biographer – writer who gets information about the person being written about.

• Sources:– Interviews– Letters– Diaries– Documents

Essay• Short piece written on ONE subject• Usually found in newspapers &

magazines (and in Language Arts!)• Purposes–To share opinions–Entertain or persuade–To describe

3 Essay Types

EXPOSITORY- tightly structured

- impersonal/formal style- presents or explains

information

PERSONAL-looser structure

-personal/informal style

-expresses writer’s thoughts & feelings

ARGUMENTATIVE-develops arguments

- tries to convince readers to adopt a

certain perspective

Informational Article

• Provides facts about a subject• Includes newspaper and magazine articles,

and feature stories• Also includes textbooks, pamphlets,

history books, gardening books, and how-to books

InterviewConversation in which one person asks

questions of another for the purpose of obtaining information

Q: I know you never have trouble coming up with ideas. Walk me through your daily inspiration and writing process.

Ray Bradbury: I just wake up with ideas every morning from my subconscious percolating.What info is the interviewer trying to obtain?

Chronological Order – the arrangement of things following one after another in time.

Point of View – the perspective of the one telling the story

1st Person – narrator is the character in the story-- Look for pronouns – I, me, we, us

3rd person – narrator is not a character-- Look for pronouns – he, she, it , they, them• 3rd person omniscent – narrator relates to the thoughts,

feelings, and actions of ALL characters

• 3rd person limited – narrator tells what ONE person think, feels, and observes

TIPS FOR READING NONFICTION

• Preview the selection (what’s in bold? What are the pictures about? Etc.)

• Clarify the organization (is it chronological, sequential, etc?)

• Summarize the main idea• Separate facts from opinions• Evaluate what you read (come up with your

own opinions!)