Creative Nonfiction Lesson 1
Creative Nonfiction Lesson 1
Introductory Message
For the facilitator:
Welcome to Creative Nonfiction, a specialized subject in Humanities and Social
Sciences (HUMSS). This module is designed to provide learners with a self-learning
tool in exploring the beauty and nature of creative nonfiction.
As the facilitator, you are tasked to guide the learners in navigating the
various activities crafted in this module in the pursuit of holistic learning. In addition,
please be reminded that the activities of this module shall be answered in a separate
sheet.
Let us continuously work together in providing life-long learning to the future of
our nation-the learners of today and that no pandemic can hinder us in our quest
towards education.
For the learner:
Kudos to your hard work! Congratulations in keeping up with the challenges
in today’s new normal classroom. This self-learning module in Creative Nonfiction is
designed especially for you. The content of this module is anchored from the Most
Essential Leaning Competencies (MELC) of this subject in lined with the K to 12
Curriculum.
In this module, you will deal with different discussions and activities that will
help you deepen your understanding about Creative Nonfiction. You are expected to
hone your creative nonfiction skills as you explore the developed multifaceted tasks
included in this learning material.
(HUMSS_CNF11/12-LB-D-3).
experience (HUMSS_CNF11/12-LB-D-4).
Let Us Try!
Example 2
Short story- a brief artistic prose form that centers on a single main incident and intends to
produce a single dominant impression.
interludes.Plays (drama), however, are generally classified into acts or major divisions.
One-act play- has one unit of time, one unit of place, and one unit of action and play
2. All stories must have a point of view. Point of view is the vantage point or the angle from
which the readers can see how the story unfolds. It can be told from the perspective of a narrator,
a main supporting character, or an observer. It can also come from an omniscient (all-knowing)
being.
Drama also employs point of view but this is not apparent and evident ina play. What is visible is
the interplay of dialogue between and among the characters. This component that moves the
action of the play. A dialogue is what the viewers see and hear in a performance and these are the
words uttered by the characters in a dramatic play.
3. The development of plot in both fiction and drama has a pattern.
Generally, it contains the following:
Exposition
Introduces the characters and dramatic situation of thestory or play
Rising Action
Introduces the conflict of the story or play
Climax
Introduces the central movement of crisis that defines the conflict
Falling Action
Introduces the aftermath of conflict (whether it is resolved or not)
Resolution/ denouement
Introduces the moment of insight, discovery, or revelationof the character after the falling action.
More popular and modern types of fiction and drama divides the plotinto three general parts: the
beginning, the middle, and the end.
Narrative Devices
1 Foreshadowing
I used in fiction and drama as a guide or hint at whatis to happen next in the story.
2 Irony
is also used both in fiction and drama when words that are uttered, either by the author or
characters in the story, are opposite of what they really mean. The intention here is to present a
difference between what is imagined will happen and what actually happens.
3 Flashback
is employed by the author or playwright through the use of past events that will help the readers
understand the present. This is generally utilized to achieve a dramatic effect or impact on the
readers and audiences.
4 A conflict
is both present in fiction and drama. It provides and showcases the opposing objectives of the
protagonist and the antagonist, or inside the protagonist.
5 The use of deus ex machina
in both fiction and drama was once a noble strategy. Today, it is a sign of weakness in the
written work. Once referring to the Greek practice of physically lowering a “god” to
the stage at the end of the play to solve all the problems, today it refers
to a contrived element in the plot to solve a problem.
Poetry is categorized into different forms- from the ancient epic to the specific limerick-but
generally there are about three major categories of poetry: narrative, lyric, and dramatic.
Narrative poems
Short and simple while others are long and complex. Epics like Iliad, ballads like Lord Randall,
and prose poems like the metrical romance of King Arthur fall under this category.
Dramatic poems
Employ dramatic form or elements of dramatic technique such as dialogues or characters, instead
of just a single speaker or persona. Eliot’s The Long Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is a typical
example of this.
Lyric poems
Brief in structure and subjective in expressing the thoughtsand emotions of the persona, the
speaker of the poem. Originally written to be sung to the accompaniment of a lyre (hence, the
term), the words in these poems could be lyrics which are strongly melodic. Songs, sonnets,
haikus, odes, elegies, and pastoral poems are examples of this.
As a non-fiction example, a white paper could have as its subject be the improvement of
the security of the cargo transportation supply chain. Its theme would be the forms of
business data and means to access it that could provide those improvements.
As a fiction example, the Hans Christian Anderson story, "The Ugly Duckling," has a subject
of alienation in that the main character is depicted as different from his peers. The themes,
however, are themes of failure to fit in, as well as self-discovery as the "duckling" grows up to
discover he was actually a swan.
Identify the purpose of your writing.
The purpose behind your writing will shape how you develop your theme in the piece. There are
numerous purposes as to why someone writes. Your writing may serve any of these purposes (or
any combination thereof):
Reflection on an idea
Demonstration of knowledge
Summary of information
Explanation of an idea
Analysis of a problem
Persuasion
Entertainment
Identify your audience. Understanding who your audience is lets you determine which themes
are appropriate to your audience. This will also help you identify how best to present those
themes to your audience. You can determine what themes are appropriate to your audience by
realistically assessing how much knowledge and experience the audience has.
For example, in a business marketing letter, your audience will be prospective customers. Your
purpose is to inform or persuade them to buy, and your theme might be to show them how your
product will meet their needs. You may include statements of needs your customer will identify
with, and then follow each statement with a short paragraph about how your product relates to
that need.
Dr. Seuss wrote books for young children, requiring him to use a limited vocabulary. His "The
Star-Bellied Sneetches" had a theme of learning to accept differences. In the story, the Sneetches
learn to accept differences after applying and removing their belly stars so many times that they
no longer remember their original appearances. In telling the story, Seuss used short words, made
up words, and wrote in a distinctive rhyming cadence that made his words. This helps the reader
recognize and remember the lessons behind them.
Consider the length of what you're writing.
Longer works, such as novels or memoirs, permit the inclusion of other themes subordinate to
the primary theme of your work. In contrast, shorter works, such as short stories or editorials,
usually have room to address only a single theme, although they may give passing reference to
supporting ideas.
For example, if your character is passionate about becoming a vegan, you might start to
examine themes of whether humans have the right to take control over the natural world.
In many non-fiction pieces, such as a letter to the editor, you are the “character” and your
motivation is what will define the theme. For example, if you are writing a letter to your
congressperson about a recent oil spill in your community, your theme could be something like
the need for environmental cleanup and responsibility.
4 Think about your story’s conflict. The characters in your story are faced with a conflict that
drives the plot. This may be an event or an antagonist. When you figure out the central conflict
of your story, you may start to uncover your theme.[5]
For example, your character’s parent committed a crime. Your character, a police officer, is
faced with a moral dilemma of whether to arrest the parent or not. Your theme could start to
emerge from this conflict.
5.Research to support your theme. Research is important in both non-fiction and fiction. In
non-fiction, you are primarily looking for facts to support your theme and the points supporting
it. In fiction, research also feeds into making your characters and the environment in which they
interact as realistic as possible.
6 Realize that you can have more than one theme. There isn’t any rule that says you can only
have one theme. You may have a dominant theme with sub-themes that strengthen and deepen
your thematic dimension.[6] For example, perhaps your dominant theme is the human impact on
the environment, and you have sub-themes of corporate greed and the breakdown of community
in modern society.
Weaving Your Theme into Your Writing
1 . Choose ways to present your theme to your reader. A solidly presented
theme will emerge through many different facets of your story. Start thinking about how your
theme will become apparent to your readers. Some of these ways include:
Try a recurring motif to institute symbolism in your story. You might have a recurring motif or
detail of a person singing “Ave Maria” in your story.
Finalizing Your Theme
1 Get feedback. Allow lots of people read your writing. It is helpful to get other eyes on a piece
of writing so that you know whether your ideas are conveyed clearly. Ask these readers about
their impressions. See if they can identify your theme without prompting.
Be open to the ways that other people respond to your writing. They might be able to point out
errors that you regularly make, which can help clarify and improve your writing. They might also
ask thought-provoking questions that helps you consider an angle you hadn’t previously
considered.
Remember that this feedback is not intended to be personal; they are responding to the writing,
not to you.
2 Put away your writing for a few days. Get some distance from your writing by putting it
away for a bit. Sometimes when we write, we’re so invested in the story and shaping the words
that we lose sight of the bigger picture. Take a break from your writing by turning your focus to a
different project for a few days. Then come back to your writing and reread it.
3 Make changes to your theme. Based on your own evaluation of the piece, as well as the
feedback you’ve solicited from others, make alterations to your theme. You may recognize that,
while you thought your theme was one aspect, your readers interpreted it very differently.
For example, perhaps you have been focusing your theme on a firefighter’s triumph over her
parents’ disapproval. But then you realize that your story is really about the firefighter’s struggle
in a male-dominated profession.
A change to your theme might necessitate adding or deleting some passages that do not
strengthen your theme.
Common Themes in Literature
These are a just a few of the many possible literary subjects and themes. The themes about the
subjects on the list are still fairly general. As a critical writer discussing a particular literary
work, you'll need to bring your observations about theme closer to the work.
1. The Individual in Nature
a. The god(s) are benevolent and will reward human beings for
overcoming evil and temptation.
b. The gods mock the individual and torture him or her for presuming
to be great.
c. The gods are jealous of and constantly thwarts human aspiration to
power and knowledge.
d. The gods are indifferent toward human beings and let them run
their
undetermined course.
e. There are no gods in whom people can place their faith or yearning
for meaning in the universe.
4. Human Relations
6. Time
a. Enjoy life now, for the present moment, because we all die too soon.
b. By the time we understand life, there is too little left to live.
7. Death
a. Death is part of living, giving life its final meaning.
b. Death is the ultimate absurd joke on life.
c. There is no death, only a different plane or mode of life without
physical decay.
d. Without love, death often appears to be the only alternative to life.
8. Alienation
Example:
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Themes: Good vs. Evil, Courage
Thematic Statement: With courage, even the smallest among us can play a
powerful role in defeating darkness.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Themes: Love, Class
Thematic Statement: Class divisions breed prejudices that can blind us to
happy possibilities.
Task 2
Direction: Read and analyze the poem given below and answer the
questions that follow using your answer sheet.
Finder Loser
Ophelia Alcantara Dimalanta
More than half of my life
I spend searching for lost
objects (papers, receipts,
old letters, pills and whatever
else) and causes and the rest,
losing and finding, and losing them again, found or otherwise;
losing what I have in good
measure, finding what
I can’t almost have-
One perpetual lifetime probe,
Forever rummaging through
Bureaus and drawers and pages
Of my life’s past disarray…
And so when I finally go
keep vault unlidded for I
shall surely sit up and look
around to pursue this search,
holding on to dear life,
or to dear death, does it matter-
they are one in the proper
time but not till then,
I shall go on seeking out
lost faces and faiths in the
cold, collecting, calculating
crowd, sadly aware that later
but an unbreath away
I shall lose them all again;
as I was won’t, losing all
in this final irretrievable
lose of my death time
or perhaps, possibly, yes,
death will be kinder and oh, yes
allow me at last this
flowing final find.
Task 3
Write a four-line stanza poem using this title, I Am. In this short poem, write about your thoughts
about yourself-your character, fears, and virtues. You can also write about your dreams and
aspirations.
I Am
*Rewrite the excerpt by using dialogue. Imagine what Tungkung Langit would say to ALunsina
and how she would respond to him. Visualize the quarrel scene between the two gods and write
an imaginary dialogue below.
Narrative detail:
__________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Tungkung Langit: _________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Alunsina: _________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Tungkung Langit: _________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Alunsina: _________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Tungkung Langit: _________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Alunsina: _________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Tungkung Langit: _________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Alunsina: _________________________________________________________________
________________
Task V. Read the questions below and write the correct answer on
your answer sheet.
1. What part of the plot introduces the moment of insight or revelation?
a. falling action b. climax c. exposition d. denouement
2. What narrative device is used when the author or character shows the
opposites of what they mean?
a. Flashback b. conflict c. Deus Ex Machina d. Irony
3. What narrative device refers to a contrived element in the plot used to
solve a problem?
a. Flashback b. conflict c. Deus Ex Machina d. Irony
4. What narrative device uses the past event to better understand the
present?
a. Flashback b. conflict c. Deus Ex Machina d. Irony
5. What is a series of imagined facts which illustrates truths about human
life?
a. Drama b. Fiction c. Fantasy c. Poetry
Let Us Reflect
You did a great job in completing our module! Kudos to your hard
work! Let us look back from where we have started and complete the
chart below. Let us reflect towards your journey in our module.
I thought…..
I learned that….