Literature is an amoeba concept (in the same way, like types of literature): throughout the centuries-old development of human civilization, it inevitably changed both in form and in content. You can confidently talk about the evolution of this type of art on a global scale or strictly restrict it to certain periods of time or a specific region (ancient literature, the Middle Ages, Russian literature of the 19th century and others), nevertheless, it is necessary to perceive it as the true art of the word and inalienable part of the global cultural process.
Word art
Traditionally, speaking of literature, the individual implies fiction. This concept (a synonym is often used - “word art”) arose on the fertile ground of oral folk art. However, unlike him, literature at this time does not exist orally, but in writing (from Latin lit (t) eratura - literally “written”, from lit (t) era - literally “letter”). Fiction uses as a unit material words and the construction of a written (natural human) language. Literature and other forms of art are similar. But its specificity is determined in comparison with the types of art that use different material instead of linguistic-verbal (visual art, music) or with it (songs, theater, cinema), on the other hand, with other types of verbal text: scientific, philosophical, journalistic and others. In addition, fiction combines any copyright (including anonymous) works, in contrast to those that definitely do not have a specific author of folklore creations.
Three main genera
The types and kinds of literature are significant associations of verbal and artistic works in the category of the relation of the “speaker of speech” (expressed) to the artistic whole. Three main genera are officially distinguished:
- epic: novel, epic, short story, novel, essay, short story, essay, fable;
- lyrical: madrigal, anthem, ode, thought, message, idyll, epigram, elegy, epitaph, epitalam;
- dramatic: drama, tragedy, tragicomedy, comedy, vaudeville, melodrama, farce.
Types and genres of literature
In the most common classification, all types of fiction are distributed within the literary family. They can be epic, which includes a novel, a novel, and a story; lyric poems include; ballads and poems are lyroepic; dramatic can be divided into drama, tragedy and comedy. Literary types can be distinguished from each other by the number of characters and storylines, volume, functions and content. In different periods of the history of literature, one kind can be represented in different genres. For example: philosophical and psychological novels, detective novels, social and rogue. Aristotle began to theoretically divide works into types of literature in his treatise entitled “Poetics”. His work was continued in modern times by the French poet critic Boileau and the German writer Lessing.
Typification of literature
Editorial and publishing training, i.e., the selection of written works for subsequent editions, is usually carried out by a publishing editor. But it is quite difficult for an ordinary user to accurately navigate in the immense sea of literary works. It is more expedient to use a systematic approach, namely, it is necessary to clearly distinguish between types of literature and their purpose.
- The novel is an impressive form of the work, having a huge number of heroes with a fairly developed and closely related system of relationships between them. The novel can be historical, family, philosophical, adventure and social.
- Epic - a series of works, rarely solitary, invariably illuminating a significant historical era or significant large-scale event.
- Novella is the primary genre of narrative prose, much shorter than a novel or novel. The collection of stories is called novelism, and the writer is called a novelist.
Not the last of the significant
- Comedy is a creation that ridicules individual or social shortcomings, focusing on especially absurd and ridiculous situations.
- Song is the oldest type of poetry, without which the category “types of fiction” would not be complete. The work is a poetic form with many verses and choruses. There are: folk, lyrical, heroic and historical.
- A fable is a prosaic, but more often poetic, work of a moralistic, moralizing and satirical character.
- A story is a literary work of a certain, often small, size that narrates about an individual event in the character's life.
- The myth - narration is also included in the section "types of literature" and brings future generations the idea of their ancestors about the universe, heroes and gods.
- A lyric poem is an expression of the emotional experiences of the author in a poetic form convenient for him.
- Essay - a narrative, a subspecies of the epic, which reliably talks about real events, facts.
- A story is a work similar in structure to a story, but differing in volume. The story can tell at once about several events from the life of the main characters.
- Melodrama - deservedly continues the list of the category “types of literature”, this is a narrative dramatic work, characterized by a categorical division of heroes into positive and negative.
- Tragedy is a subspecies of drama that tells of a difficult fate, sometimes leading to the death of a character.
Literature and Modernity
Life itself every day more and more convincingly convinces everyone that the level of coherence and unity of book editions, newspaper and journal materials is one of the main criteria for the effectiveness of society’s education. Naturally, the initial stage of acquaintance with literature (not counting children's) starts at school. Therefore, any methodological recommendations for literature teachers contain a variety of types of literature lessons that help to convey the necessary knowledge in an accessible form to the child's perception.
Individual choice
It is difficult to overestimate the role of literature in the life of modern man, because books have brought up more than one generation. It was they who helped people comprehend the world around them and themselves, stimulated the desire for truth, principles of morality and knowledge, and taught to respect the past. Unfortunately, literature and other art forms in modern society are often underestimated. There is a certain category of individuals who claim that literature has already outlived itself; it has been fully replaced by television and film. But whether or not to take advantage of the opportunity that the books provide is an individual choice of each.