Narrative and Text Types
Narrative
Internal Narrator
Tells the story in the first person. If the narrator is the protagonist (the protagonist-narrator) = autobiographical narration.
External Narrator
Tells the story in the third person. There are two types:
- Omniscient narrator: Knows the thoughts, feelings, and emotions of the characters.
- Objective narrator: Tells the story as seen from outside, as a witness.
The Arguments
Events told chronologically (in the order that they occur).
The Characters
Directly responsible for the action.
- Main protagonist and antagonist: The protagonist tries to meet their objectives.
- Secondary characters: Do not have a relevant role.
- Round characters: Evolve throughout the work, changing their way of thinking and acting.
- Flat characters: Do not evolve, and their reactions are predictable.
The Space
Place (real or fictional) where the story develops.
The Time
- External or historical time: The historical periods where the events of the narrative occur.
- Internal or narrative time: The course from the beginning to the end of the story.
- Verbal time: Refers to the past, present, and future. It has nothing to do with the other types of time.
Structure
External Structure
The story can be divided into chapters, parts, sections, etc., depending on its length.
Internal Structure
- Exposition: Starting point of the story, where the characters, space, time, etc., are introduced.
- Rising action: Central part of the narration and the most extensive, where the events develop.
- Climax: The turning point of the story.
- Falling action: Events that lead to the resolution.
- Resolution: Solution of the conflict and the end of the story.
Text Types
Description
Uses words to represent reality.
- Static description: Describes parts simultaneously as they are at a given moment.
- Dynamic description: Describes the various moments of a process as it unfolds.
Phases of Description
- Observation
- Selection
- Ordering
- Expression
Types of Description
- Technical or scientific: Objective and factual, often using technical terms.
- Literary: Subjective and artistic, focusing on aesthetics. Describes people, animals, places, etc.
Description of People
- Prosopography: Description of a person’s physical appearance: clothes, height, face, etc.
- Etopeya: Description of a person’s psychological traits: character, hobbies, flaws, etc.
- Portrait: Combines prosopography and etopeya to describe both physical and psychological traits.
- Caricature: Humorous or satirical description that exaggerates a person’s traits.
Exposition Text
Introduces a topic with the intent to explain and make it understandable to others.
Preparation
- Invention or documentation: Collect information on the subject.
- Arrangement: Organize the information in a coherent way.
- Elocution: Express the text using appropriate language.
Structure
- Introduction: Presents the topic and justifies its choice.
- Body: Explains the main idea and supporting details in a clear and orderly manner.
- Conclusion: Summarizes the main idea expressed in the introduction.
Features
- Syntactic traits: Declarative sentences, explanatory nominal complements, impersonal sentences, and clarifying explanations.
- Verbal forms: Indicative mood (objectivity) and present gnomic (general truths).
- Lexical traits: Denotative meaning, abstract nouns (creation, similarity), and technical terms.
Argumentative Text
Defends or refutes an idea or opinion using arguments and reasoning to persuade the reader.
Structure
- Introduction: Introduces the theme or thesis.
- Body: Presents arguments to support the thesis and, if necessary, a counter-argumentation.
- Conclusion: Restates the thesis and summarizes the main arguments.
Types of Arguments
- Generally accepted truths: Ideas widely accepted by society.
- Arguments from authority: Quotes or testimonies from prestigious people.
- Arguments based on personal experience: Derived from the author’s experiences.
- Rational arguments: Ideas accepted by society and scientifically proven.
- Comparison or exemplification arguments: Concrete examples.
Features
- Use of technical terms.
- Subordinate and coordinate sentences.
Instructional Text
Provides information and shows the receiver how to do something.
Structure
- Descriptive instructions.
- Informative instructions.
Linguistic Features
- Clear, simple, and objective lexicon. Technical terms may appear.
- Imperative mood (take), infinitive (to take), and subjunctive (that you take). Periphrasis of obligation.
- Short sentences.
- Second grammatical person (you).
- Short paragraphs, often numbered or preceded by letters.
Predictive Text
Informs about something that will or may happen in the future.
Structure
Similar to other informative texts, but focused on future events.
Linguistic Features
- Lexicon with technical terms.
- Future and conditional tenses. Periphrasis of probability.
- Second person verbal forms.
- Simple and compound sentences (coordinate or subordinate).
- Conditional sentences.
- Nominal constructions: Sentences without verbs (Heavy rains in the Cantabrian Sea).
- Copulative constructions: It is possible that…
- Dubitative sentences with adverbs or adverbial phrases of doubt: Perhaps, maybe, possibly.
- Iconic or symbolic images: Maps, diagrams, objects, animals, planets, etc.
- Images accompanied by captions.