Informational Text Analysis

Some people look at history as a boring subject, but that’s because they haven’t thought of it like a marvelous tale of action, drama, tragedy, and whole lot of chaos. By thinking of it that way, it will make the subject much more interesting.

Intertwined within the novel is the presence of many different genres including letters, articles and magazine clippings, and pictures. At first sight there is the

Nonfiction is easier to believe than fiction. It is likely that we find interest in what we read when the book is nonfiction rather than a fiction book. However, fiction helps you think more while processing the text you are trying to comprehend. Thoughts like, “what if this happened to me,” “How would I react,” tend to come up. I have learned more about East LA and how gang violence was, and is still a major issue. Literature influences change. If Luis didn’t encounter writing, or poetry he may still be involved in

“For when textbook authors leave out the warts, the problems, the unfortunate character traits, and the mistaken ideas, they reduce heroes from dramatic men and women to melodramatic stick figures. Their inner struggles disappear and they become goody- goody, not just merely good.” (Loewen, pg. 29). “Lies My Teacher Told Me” is a non- fiction book written by author, American sociologist, and historian, James W. Loewen. The popular belief is that schools buy the textbook that best fits the curriculum, and by following these textbooks, students are learning to the best of their ability. However, Loewen challenges this belief by providing evidence from eighteen different American history textbooks. He believes that people in history should not be depicted as heroes when they simply are not. To continue, Loewen states that students find history to be so boring since they can not relate to it or the people in it. On page 354, he even concludes his book by stating, “Students will start finding history interesting when their teachers and textbook stop lying to them.”

The genre historical fiction focuses young readers to inform them about historical and significant cultural events in history, but to do in a way that is comfortable for readers in this age group. One Crazy Summer is a good example of young adult literature of highlighting cultural/historical events and entertaining to its audience. Two characteristics that make this a great novel for middle school readers is that 1- It encourages further inquiry( historical) and 2-The situations and characters are relatable (Y/A novel).

History intrigues me because, unlike other branches of education, it tells a story. The problem with telling a story is that over time, certain events are altered or omitted by those in power to suit their needs. I was once told that History is written by the victors. This includes not just the winners in war, but the political victors, champions of power, and the wealthy patronage of scoundrels seeking to whitewash their history of shame and corruption. History books, therefore rarely tell the whole story. An example could be when a noble, who just survived a political

This exposure to history may potentially cause social studies teachers to retract their summer reading assignments and discuss A Glass Castle instead. Many would argue that the current summer reading assignment, Black Boy by Richard Wright, contains similar themes and also discusses bits of U.S. history. Although these people speak the truth, The Glass Castle would make a better fit for the summer reading assignment simply because students can relate more to the plot and characters. Black Boy takes places between 1912 and 1937 and The Glass Castle takes place between 1957 and 2007. Students will find more in common with the characters in Walls’ work, causing them to show more interest in the assignment. Last year, one in every nine kids did not complete the summer reading assignment. This proportion would decrease if students felt engaged and had interest in the literature. A Glass Castle instills laughter yet also warms readers’ hearts. If we read and analyze this book at the beginning of the year, students will not feel stressed out during the first few weeks of school because it contains light content and a clear narrative

This will help my writing by encouraging me to incorporate facts where they seamlessly fit in the text, as opposed to placing historical elements in careless, literary locations that create a lackluster reading experience. By continuing to read texts from the historical fiction genre, an aspiring (as well as current) writer can monitor the various ways historical research affects a piece, whether it be in a positive or negative

Why should high schoolers be forced to read a book that isn’t interesting to them? Often times they either do not apply to real life situations or even teach anything that a teenager would understand. So, the high schooler skims through the book and does not pay attention to any detail. High school classrooms need better books that can teach history in a fun way, and add some interesting things to which students can reflect and think on. A book read in high school, should allow the students to think critically about the text they are reading, should include some references to history, and incorporate themes that are understandable and relatable to a high school student’s life. This makes a book want to be read as well as enjoyable. The

As an example from “The Drummer Boy” of Shiloh by Ray Bradbury, “In the April night, more than once, blossoms fell from the orchard trees and lit with rustling tops on the drumskin. At Midnight a peach stone left miraculously on a branch through winter flickered by a bird, fell swift and unseen. Struck once like panic, which jerked the boy upright” (Bradbury 318). Already stated from the text is how the literature information is not accurate. Nothing from this is facts from the Civil war. Throughout the text it tells a story from that time and what it could be like, the actual story does not have the basic facts as would a informational text would. On the other hand, from an informational text, “Battle of Shiloh”, “The Battle of Shiloh began at sunrise on April 6, 1862 -- the Sabbath -- as 44,000 Confederate soldiers swooped down on an unsuspecting Union Army encampment near Pittsburgh Landing, a nondescript hog-and-cotton steamboat dock on the Tennessee River.” This is a clear fact with numbers involved. So this tells the reader what was going on and does not have any made up people to fill in the story. It is just simply what had happened. So all in all when comparing two texts one from literature and and informational text they differ in how the reader can learn about the

Capote wrote what he considered to be the first nonfiction novel. Simply defined a nonfiction novel is one in which an event is reported using traditional literary and rhetorical conventions to expose broader truths

A fictional novel can serve as a useful source for historical information if it the right one. It just depends on the novel and the author who has written it. Also, it makes a difference if the author actually had experience with what they have written about. All Quit on the Western Front, for example, can be used to show the troubles of War World I. The author Erich Maria Remarque himself had been in the war. Nevertheless, there is one negative thing about using nonfiction. For example, a person would still have to do research. A nonfictional novel could be used for historial information depending on the author and their experiences, and if the author has used factual information; however, extra research is still needed.

When I took Composition I, a few decades ago, one of my assignments was to see the movie “The Deer Hunter” and then to write a paper. We were given the option to read the book, which I did. My instruc-tor wrote a note on my report stating that my imagination could not be good enough to get the full im-pact of the story. (Years later I saw the movie and it was just as I had imagined.) There are authors who have the ability to bring stories alive for their readers. Wilfred Owens' poem "Dulce et Decorum Est" is a good example of this. I’m not a fan of history, at least not the kind you find in textbooks. However, I could listen to my grandfather’s brother talk about his experiences in World War II for hours. When we forget history we also do

As a small child of five, I would believe everything I read or saw. Whether it was a painting or photograph, a fairytale or book, fiction or nonfiction, did not matter to me at such a young age. Sometimes the true and false is obvious and effortless to pick out, while other times, it can be much more difficult. Depending on the genre of literature, it can be easier or harder to learn information about the topic. Learning history through literature is different from learning through informational text because literature can be interpreted diversely, it includes the creator’s perspective, and literature has artistic licence.

Historical fiction is set in the past and tells a story using details from the time and place to which it is referring. This can and often includes historical figures giving the reader a sense of the time and place. Children who read historical fiction gain understanding of their own heritage, people, beliefs values hardships and physical surroundings. They can make the connections between the influences of the past and what influences them now. As they discover universal truths identify feelings and behaviors, it will encourage them to make a better choice for themselves. Understanding different viewpoints will develop sensitivities and empathy helping them to realize that history shows us that we must work together.