JAMB Exam > JAMB Notes > Literature in English > Cheatsheet: Major Genres
Cheatsheet: Major Genres
1. Prose
1.1 Definition and Characteristics
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Prose | Written or spoken language in its ordinary form without metrical structure. |
| Characteristics | Uses sentences and paragraphs; follows grammatical structure; no rhythmic pattern; resembles everyday speech. |
1.2 Types of Prose
1.2.1 Fiction
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Novel | Long narrative work with complex characters and plots; explores human experiences in depth. |
| Novella | Shorter than a novel but longer than a short story; focused narrative with fewer characters. |
| Short Story | Brief narrative focusing on a single incident or character; limited time span and setting. |
| Romance | Centers on love relationships and emotional connections between characters. |
| Fable | Short tale featuring animals or objects as characters; teaches moral lessons. |
| Parable | Simple story illustrating a moral or spiritual lesson. |
| Allegory | Narrative where characters and events symbolize deeper meanings or abstract ideas. |
1.2.2 Non-Fiction
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Biography | Account of a person's life written by another person. |
| Autobiography | Account of a person's life written by that person. |
| Memoir | Personal account focusing on specific experiences or periods in the writer's life. |
| Essay | Short composition expressing the writer's perspective on a particular subject. |
| Letter | Written communication addressed to a specific person or group. |
| Diary/Journal | Daily record of personal thoughts, experiences, and observations. |
| Travel Writing | Descriptive account of journeys and places visited. |
1.3 Elements of Prose Fiction
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
| Plot | Sequence of events in a story; includes exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution. |
| Character | Individuals in the story; can be protagonist, antagonist, round, flat, static, or dynamic. |
| Setting | Time and place where the story occurs; includes physical location and historical period. |
| Theme | Central idea or underlying meaning of the story. |
| Point of View | Perspective from which the story is told; first person, second person, third person limited, or omniscient. |
| Style | Author's distinctive way of using language; includes word choice, sentence structure, and tone. |
| Conflict | Struggle between opposing forces; can be internal or external. |
1.4 Narrative Techniques
- Flashback: Interruption to show events that happened earlier
- Foreshadowing: Hints about future events in the story
- Suspense: Tension created by uncertainty about outcomes
- Stream of Consciousness: Continuous flow of character's thoughts
- Dialogue: Conversation between characters
- Description: Detailed portrayal of people, places, or things
- Narration: Account of events and actions
2. Poetry
2.1 Definition and Characteristics
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| Poetry | Literary work using rhythmic and aesthetic qualities of language to evoke meanings. |
| Key Features | Uses lines and stanzas; employs rhythm, meter, and sound devices; condensed language; figurative expressions. |
2.2 Types of Poetry
2.2.1 By Structure
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Sonnet | 14-line poem with specific rhyme scheme; Shakespearean (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG) or Petrarchan (ABBAABBA CDECDE). |
| Haiku | Japanese three-line poem with 5-7-5 syllable pattern; focuses on nature or seasons. |
| Limerick | Five-line humorous poem with AABBA rhyme scheme. |
| Ballad | Narrative poem with simple language; often set to music; tells a story. |
| Free Verse | Poetry without regular meter or rhyme scheme; uses natural speech rhythms. |
| Blank Verse | Unrhymed poetry in iambic pentameter. |
| Ode | Lyric poem expressing praise or celebration of a person, thing, or event. |
| Elegy | Mournful poem lamenting the dead or reflecting on serious loss. |
2.2.2 By Content
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Lyric Poetry | Expresses personal emotions and feelings; sung to musical accompaniment in ancient times. |
| Narrative Poetry | Tells a story with characters, plot, and setting. |
| Dramatic Poetry | Uses dramatic form or technique; includes dramatic monologue. |
| Epic Poetry | Long narrative about heroic deeds and events significant to a culture. |
2.3 Poetic Devices
2.3.1 Sound Devices
| Device | Definition |
|---|---|
| Alliteration | Repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words. |
| Assonance | Repetition of vowel sounds within words. |
| Consonance | Repetition of consonant sounds within or at the end of words. |
| Onomatopoeia | Words that imitate sounds they describe. |
| Rhyme | Correspondence of sounds at the end of words or lines. |
| Rhythm | Pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line. |
| Meter | Regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables; measured in feet. |
2.3.2 Figurative Language
| Device | Definition |
|---|---|
| Simile | Comparison using "like" or "as". |
| Metaphor | Direct comparison without using "like" or "as". |
| Personification | Giving human qualities to non-human things. |
| Hyperbole | Exaggeration for emphasis or effect. |
| Symbolism | Object or action representing abstract ideas. |
| Imagery | Descriptive language appealing to the senses. |
| Apostrophe | Direct address to an absent person or abstract concept. |
2.4 Poetic Structure Elements
- Line: Single row of words in a poem
- Stanza: Group of lines forming a unit; verse paragraph
- Couplet: Two-line stanza
- Tercet: Three-line stanza
- Quatrain: Four-line stanza
- Refrain: Repeated line or group of lines
- Caesura: Pause within a line of poetry
- Enjambment: Continuation of sentence beyond line break
2.5 Metrical Feet
| Foot Type | Pattern |
|---|---|
| Iamb | Unstressed-stressed (da-DUM) |
| Trochee | Stressed-unstressed (DUM-da) |
| Anapest | Unstressed-unstressed-stressed (da-da-DUM) |
| Dactyl | Stressed-unstressed-unstressed (DUM-da-da) |
| Spondee | Stressed-stressed (DUM-DUM) |
3. Drama
3.1 Definition and Characteristics
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| Drama | Literary composition intended for performance by actors on a stage. |
| Key Features | Written in dialogue form; includes stage directions; meant for live performance; uses theatrical conventions. |
3.2 Types of Drama
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Tragedy | Serious play ending in catastrophe for the protagonist; explores human suffering and downfall. |
| Comedy | Humorous play with happy ending; entertains through wit and amusing situations. |
| Tragicomedy | Combines elements of both tragedy and comedy; serious subject treated lightly. |
| Melodrama | Sensational plot with exaggerated characters and emotions; clear good versus evil. |
| Farce | Comedy using exaggerated situations, physical humor, and improbable events. |
| Satire | Uses humor, irony, and exaggeration to criticize society or human folly. |
| History Play | Dramatizes historical events and figures. |
| Morality Play | Allegorical drama teaching moral lessons; characters represent virtues and vices. |
3.3 Elements of Drama
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
| Plot | Sequence of events; includes exposition, complication, crisis, climax, and resolution. |
| Character | Individuals portrayed by actors; includes protagonist, antagonist, foil. |
| Dialogue | Conversation between characters; reveals personality and advances plot. |
| Monologue | Long speech by one character to others on stage. |
| Soliloquy | Character speaks thoughts aloud while alone; audience hears inner feelings. |
| Aside | Brief remark by character to audience, unheard by other characters. |
| Setting | Time and place of the action; created through scenery and stage design. |
| Theme | Central idea or message of the play. |
| Conflict | Struggle between opposing forces driving the action. |
3.4 Dramatic Structure
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Act | Major division of a play; most plays have 3-5 acts. |
| Scene | Subdivision of an act; change in time or location. |
| Exposition | Introduction providing background information and setting. |
| Rising Action | Series of events building tension and complication. |
| Climax | Turning point of highest tension and emotional intensity. |
| Falling Action | Events following climax leading toward resolution. |
| Denouement | Final outcome; resolution of conflicts and loose ends. |
3.5 Dramatic Techniques
- Stage Directions: Instructions for actors and technical crew about movement, tone, and effects
- Dramatic Irony: Audience knows something characters do not
- Comic Relief: Humorous scene interrupting serious action to relieve tension
- Suspense: Uncertainty about outcome creating anticipation
- Foreshadowing: Hints about future events
- Flashback: Scene depicting earlier events
- Symbolism: Objects or actions representing abstract ideas
3.6 Theatrical Conventions
| Convention | Description |
|---|---|
| Fourth Wall | Invisible barrier between actors and audience. |
| Chorus | Group of performers commenting on action; common in Greek drama. |
| Prologue | Opening section introducing the play. |
| Epilogue | Concluding section after main action. |
| Props | Objects used by actors during performance. |
| Costume | Clothing worn by actors to represent characters. |
| Blocking | Planned movement of actors on stage. |
3.7 Tragic Elements
- Tragic Hero: Noble character with fatal flaw leading to downfall
- Hamartia: Tragic flaw or error in judgment
- Hubris: Excessive pride leading to downfall
- Peripeteia: Sudden reversal of fortune
- Anagnorisis: Moment of recognition or discovery
- Catharsis: Emotional purging experienced by audience
- Nemesis: Agent of downfall or retribution
4. Distinguishing Features of Major Genres
4.1 Comparative Overview
| Feature | Prose |
|---|---|
| Form | Continuous text in sentences and paragraphs |
| Language | Ordinary language following grammatical rules |
| Purpose | Narrate stories, present information, express ideas |
| Length | Variable; can be short or very long |
| Feature | Poetry |
|---|---|
| Form | Lines and stanzas; may follow specific structures |
| Language | Condensed, rhythmic; uses figurative devices |
| Purpose | Express emotions, create aesthetic experience, evoke imagery |
| Length | Varies; often shorter and more concentrated |
| Feature | Drama |
|---|---|
| Form | Dialogue and stage directions; acts and scenes |
| Language | Conversational; meant to be spoken aloud |
| Purpose | Entertain through performance; explore human experiences visually |
| Length | Structured by performance time; one to several acts |
4.2 Key Identification Points
- Prose uses narrator to tell story; Drama shows action through characters
- Poetry emphasizes sound, rhythm, and condensed language
- Prose provides detailed descriptions; Drama relies on visual representation
- Poetry uses line breaks for effect; Prose uses continuous text
- Drama requires performance space and actors; Other genres read silently
- Poetry often uses meter and rhyme; Prose uses natural sentence flow
- Drama includes stage directions; Prose includes narrative description
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Apr 20, 2026 Last updated
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