In literature, it is very important to gain an understanding of the different genres. People often discover that various genres have many similarities as well as differences. For instance, the genres mystery, high-fantasy, and survival are very alike but have many differences as well.
The mystery genre is a type of fiction in which a detective or some other professional (the protagonist) solves a realistic yet suspenseful crime or series of crimes (the plot). The other characters are typically going to be the suspects that were somehow linked with the crime, and the protagonist in the story will often find themselves in danger. The mystery genre will begin with some kind of action like murder and use that suspence to draw the reader into the story. Mystery stories will have things like foreshadowing evidence, false leads, an unexpected villain or culprit, a last minute resolution to the plot, and an expectation that the situation will work itself out. A perfect example of this genre is One of us is Lying. This book directly goes into the murder and has so many unexpected turns that you will not be able to solve who was actually the killer until the very end.
The high-fantasy genre takes place in a fictional world with its own set of rules and laws, it will typically be like a alternate secondary world of our own. In high-fantasy there is a hero who is pressured to act by conditions and/or events outside of their control. In fact, stories of this genre are usually told through the eyes of the hero because they are leading the charge of good against evil. They will grow to defeat odds and challenge evil. Typically the hero will not succeed the first time, but they will find means either within themself or from outside sources to continue on their quest, which if they fail, would have world reaching consequences. The setting for the quests are normally either a world separate unto ours, a world where our world doesn’t even exist, a secondary world that is reached to ours through a portal, or lastly, a secondary would within ours. An example of this genre is the book Lord of the Rings. Lord of the Rings is based in a completely developed world that is not earth, earth doesn’t even exist for them.
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The survival genre is a fiction or nonfiction focusing on a person or group of people who must be brave in order to survive. Survival genre shows knowledge and how-to make do with what one has in a limited environment in order to keep themselves and/or others alive. Survival in books can also be where society has crumbled and people must survive the changed world in isolated groups. A perfect example of this genre is Bird Box. Bird Box is based in a world where society has crumbled and they have to survive with limited ways of getting resources and not being able to look. A great nonfiction example would be the book Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. It is about a former Olympic track star who survived a plane crash, spent 47 days drifting on a raft, and then survived more than two and a half years as a prisoner of war.
References
- Mystery Genre
- New York Times Best Sellers List
- Fiction Section on The Guardian
- Best Sellers in Mystery, Thriller & Suspense on Amazon
- Genres in Literature
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Cite this paper
Mystery, High-Fantasy, and Survival Literary Genre. (2021, Aug 26). Retrieved from https://samploon.com/mystery-high-fantasy-and-survival-literary-genre/
