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Non-fiction and literary non-fiction
Paper 2 gives you two unseen non-fiction extracts, one from the 20th century and one from the 21st century. One of them is literary non-fiction.
What counts as non-fiction
Non-fiction is writing about real people, events and ideas.
Examples: newspaper and magazine articles, speeches, letters, reviews, blogs, essays, reports.
Literary non-fiction is true writing crafted like literature: autobiography and memoir, travel writing, diaries and journals, and some journalism. It uses description, narrative and imagery.
Examples: newspaper and magazine articles, speeches, letters, reviews, blogs, essays, reports.
Literary non-fiction is true writing crafted like literature: autobiography and memoir, travel writing, diaries and journals, and some journalism. It uses description, narrative and imagery.
Text 1: a memoir
Text 2: an article
Which of the two practice texts is literary non-fiction, and why?
- Text 1 is a personal memory told as a story.
- It uses description, imagery and a narrative voice.
- Text 2 is a news-style feature reporting facts and views.
Answer: Text 1, because it is a crafted personal memoir using literary techniques.
Paper 2 uses two unseen extracts from the 20th and 21st centuries. One is literary non-fiction: true writing shaped like literature, such as memoir or travel writing.
The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.
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