2 Narrative, Exposition, Description, Reflection, Persuasion
In this chapter, we will practice:
- recognizing and composing the five types of writing: narration, exposition, description, reflection, persuasion
- recognizing how different types of writing “make up” texts
- recognizing how different types of writing work in and across different genres
- thinking about how voice can work differently in different types of writing
There are five kinds of writing we will discuss and practice in this class. Genres are made of kinds of writing pushed together or developed into compositions that suit their purpose, audience, community, and conversation. Some genres are largely comprised by a particular kind of genre (romance novels are primarily made of narrative writing) and others are composites (lab reports are made of expository writing and also descriptive and also, perhaps in their conclusions, reflective).
Narrative
A narrative is the sequence of events that make up a story, including characters, plot, setting, and theme. It’s the way in which a series of events is told. A narrative can be expressed through various forms, such as written or spoken language, images, or film. It can be part of a larger text, such as including a story as part of your college application essay or personal testimony in a newspaper editorial, or it can comprise the entire text, such as a children’s book or sci-fi novel.
Some narratives move in chronological order (i.e. what happened first, second, third, etc.). Some begin at the end and work backward. Others jump between events in a way that, eventually, brings attention to particular themes or relationships. These choices made by the storyteller impact the meaning and reception of a story. Details like dialogue, setting description, voice, and sensory language enhance the message of the narrative.
Storytelling is a thing humans do to create connections, to convey information, and to understand their world. Humans relate to each other through stories and therefore find stories incredibly interesting and persuasive. Narratives help us relate to one another and provide a way to understand our differences.
Because readers are so familiar with storytelling in their lives, they expect to read detailed descriptions of specific scenes from a person’s experience and relate those experiences to a greater theme or point of significance. They expect to hear “what happened” told in an engaging way. Writers can meet reader expectations by including vivid details about the experience and relating the narrative to something larger than itself.
Most narratives include:
| A beginning middle and end | Where does the story start? What happens? Where does it stop? |
| A main character and main set of characters | Who is the story primarily about? What are they like? What do they do? What are their relationships to each other? |
| A setting in time and place | Where and when does the story takes place? |
| Rising, climactic, and falling acti