Narrative

A narrative is a writing genre (a specific type of writing), that tells a story for the purpose of making a point. In general, they should be about an experience that happened in a person’s life, a way to present an argument, or a way to report information. It needs to include a clearly defined event, a clearly described setting, vivid, descriptive details, a consistent point of view, a clear point, and a consistent tone. Incorporated within a narrative, are also rhetorical situations, later described.

Main Points In a narrative piece, the events used are very important, and they need to be kept clear to the reader. Placing them in an orderly manner can help make the writing successful. They should be used in a way that keeps the reader on track, and makes them want to find out what happens next. If they are not, the reader will likely get lost throughout the story. An appropriate structure, is to start at the beginning of the story, and go straight forward to the end. Other techniques can be used though. This could be, starting from the end of the story, and working your way back, or using flashbacks, or flash forwards, throughout the writings.

Narratives should include a clearly described setting. This is when and where the story takes place. The reader needs to be able to identify these key elements. This will keep the reader involved, while allowing him/her to feel like they are in the story.

A way to help establish the setting, is to use vivid, descriptive details. This is a major key in writing a successful narrative. The details should help set up the tone, as well. They also allow the reader to paint a picture, and allows them to put themselves right into the story.

A point of view is a position from which something is considered. It is the way that the reader experiences the story. The common points of view are first person, which uses I or we, and third person, which uses he, she, or they. A narrative should include either of these, as long as it stays consistent the whole way throughout the story.

Narratives need to tell stories that matter. They need to have a specific point. Make sure to make it clear to the reader, what the reason for writing this piece is. Ways to accomplish this, is by stating it at the beginning, or to hint at it, throughout the story. Either way, the reader should be able to tell what it’s about.

Tone is a writer’s or speaker’s attitude toward his or her readers and subject. Tone reflects the writer’s stance. In different pieces of writings, tone is allowed to change throughout the writing. In a narrative though, the tone must stay consistent. This helps get your point across more clearly, and it prevents the reader from becoming confusing

Rhetorical Situations

Narratives also include rhetorical situations. These are the circumstances that affect writing or other communication. The different aspects of rhetorical situations are audience, genre, purpose, stance, context, medium and design, and tone(previously described).

When writing a narrative, you have to base your writing off of who your audience is. This helps to tell you what severity of words that should be used. If the audience is of the younger generation, the words should be small, and very understandable. If the audience is in a college class, the words should have more meaning, and should be intellectual.

Genre is another word for categorization, or ways of classifying things. In this case, the genre is narrative. There are different types of genres, including reports, arguments, letters, ext.

Purpose is basically the writer’s goals. It is the reason why the author is choosing to write the piece. While writing a narrative, it is necessary to have a purpose, to show the reader why you are in fact writing the paper.

Stance is a writer’s or speaker’s attitude toward his or her subject. Without stance, the paper would have no emotion or purpose. The reader needs to be able to feel how you feel about the topic at hand.

Context is what has been said about your topic to this point. What has other people said about the topic at hand? This can help to remind you what you can put into your paper.

Lastly, the medium you choose to use, can affect your paper. A medium is a means of communicating. It is how you get your story out to other people. This can be done in a number of ways. It can be in print, displayed online, or even in a speech. Before writing, think about how your paper will be displayed.