Genre

Genre, a French word translating into kind or type, is the literary device that tells what category of literature a work falls within. Works are characterized into a certain genre depending the type of subject matter they focus on. It can tell whether the work is fiction or nonfiction. Since many types of fiction and nonfiction exist, genre can also go deeper and specify types such as comedy, tragedy, epic poetry, and science fiction within those categories. Genres have to allow for some flexibility as some works do not fit clearly into one category or another.

“Yellow Woman” by Silko and “To Build a Fire” by London are both examples of fictional short stories. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an example of a fictional novel.

Works Cited

Belton, Robert. Words of Art. 2002.

"Genre." Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature. 1995 ed.

Murfin, Ray. The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms. 2003.