Narrative & Rhetorical Texts: A Guide to Key Elements & Styles
Narrative Text
Characteristics of Narrative Texts
- Connectors: Connectors (adverbs, phrases, etc.) relate and connect text segments.
- Action Verbs: Show actions occurring over time.
- Predicative Syntactic Structures: Preference for predicative structures, while attributive structures suit static descriptions.
- Descriptive Sequences: Descriptions serve various functions (dilatory, demarcative, decorative, or symbolic).
- Dialogue: Expresses characters’ opinions and sentiments, either directly or indirectly.
- Time and Place: Circumstances of time and place vary in accuracy depending on the story type.
Classification of Narrative Texts
- Fictional Narratives: Short stories, novels, fables.
- Real Narratives: Reports, news articles.
- Autobiographical Nonfiction: Memoirs, autobiographies, personal diaries.
News
- Feature: Enhanced graphic information.
Reports
- Feature: Interpretive and evaluative information about current events.
Memoirs
- Feature: Focus on events and context shaping the author’s life.
Autobiography
- Feature: Retrospective prose account of one’s own life.
Personal Diary
- Feature: Daily record of events, not intended for publication.
Narrative Expression
Narrator and Point of View
- Omniscient Narrator: Knows everything about the story and characters.
- Narrator-Character: A character within the story who narrates the events.
- Protagonist Narrator: The main character narrates the story.
Elements of Narrative
- Time
- Space
The Spanish American Narrative
The 20th-century renewal of the novel and short story in Latin American literature is defined by overcoming realism. This was achieved through changes in language, overlapping styles, and innovations in structure, point of view, and narrative approach. A key element is the combination of fantasy and reality, known as magic realism. Jorge Luis Borges, in the 1940s, broke boundaries between magic and reality. The 1960s saw the rise of novelists like Julio Cortázar, Gabriel García Márquez, and Mario Vargas Llosa, who championed magic realism.
Rhetorical Text
Rhetorical text aims to impress our sensibility. The issuer uses language to create beauty or achieve effects like musicality. Rhetorical texts are diverse, including poems in verse or prose. When phonetic elements follow an established order, the text is in verse. Poems convey emotions and experiences. The poet uses rich stylistic resources and verse. Rhythm is achieved through repetition of sound elements: the same number of syllables, the distribution of stressed and unstressed syllables, and pauses after each verse.
Poetry
Characteristics of Rhetorical Text
- Emphasis on form and structure.
- Connotative meaning.
- Ambiguity.
- Diversion of common language use.
- Rhythm.
Types of Rhetorical Text
- Poems
- Riddles
- Sayings
- Puns
- Tongue-twisters
Lyric Poetry
Lyric poetry expresses subjective experiences. It lacks plot. The poet communicates personal experiences with intensity. Sound intensity and quantity combine to form rhythmic structures. In verse, rhythmic elements combine rigorously.
Poetry in the Middle Ages (12th-14th Centuries)
The oldest known poems are jarchas, brief Mozarabic songs. These anonymous poems reflect the coexistence of cultures. A popular Spanish oral poetic tradition existed, adopting various forms and themes. Romances began enriching this tradition in the late 14th century.