Metro Manila College

U-Site, Jordan Plaines Subdivision,

Brgy. Kaligayahan, Novaliches, Quezon City

2nd Semester S.Y. 2020-2021

CREATIVE NONFICTION: THE LITERARY ESSAY

HUMSS- GRADE 11

FIRST QUARTER- MODULE 5

Prepared by:

MS. FLORIFAYE D. LANGGA

MS. JEAN CARLA N. LEONOR
 PRINCIPLES, ELEMENTS, TECHNIQUES,
AND DEVICES OF CREATIVE NONFICTION

CONTENT STANDARD
The learners have an understanding of…
CS 2. delineation between creative and the nonfictional elements of creative nonfictional text.

PERFFORMANCE STANDARD
The learners shall be able to…
PS 2. clearly and coherently use multiple elements conventionally identified with a genre for a
written output.

OBJECTIVES:

The learners will…

 Analyze factual/nonfictional elements (Plot, Characters, Characterization, Point of View,

Angle, Setting and Atmosphere, Symbols and Symbolisms, Irony, Figures of speech,
Dialogue, Scene, Other elements and Devices) in the texts;

 Write a draft of a short piece (Fiction, Poetry, Drama, etc.) using any of the literary
conventions of genre following these pointers:

1. Choosing a topic
2. Formulating a thesis statement
3. Organizing and developing ideas
4. Using any literary conventions of a genre
5. Ensuring that theme and technique are effectively developed.

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 LESSON 5: Using Elements of Creative Nonfiction

LESSON 5.1 Plot and Characterization

“But, how do you know if an ending is truly good for the characters
unless you've traveled with them through every page?”
― Shannon Hale, Midnight in Austenland

Writing a good plot and fleshing out the characters of the story is never easy unless you will
apply techniques and styles which will naturally present them to your readers. When you study the
plot, you should make sure that you will focus on what drives, motivates, or shapes the story.

PLOT. This refers to how the story unfolds (i.e. its sequence of actions or events) and gives
direction of the story as it moves in time.

“In nonfiction, the plot is the organization of information and how it builds to make an argument,
to prove a point, and to come to convincing conclusions” (Sucker, 2021).

The plot can be divided into the following:

 Exposition provides the initiating event and

the background information (typically giving
description about the place, time, and
characters).
 Rising Action is where the conflict and tension
appear to the characters.
 Climax is the most intense part of the story.
 Falling Action tackles on how the tension or problem is resolved by the characters
 Resolution / Ending completes the story (somehow there are open ended ending where the
readers are allowed to imagine what would happen to the last part of the story.

In some stories, the events are not chronologically arranged. Most likely, the writer has made
use of time-shifting devices like the popular flashback – a literary device that transports the story in a
time in the past. This technique is used to build up suspense.

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 Read the story and identify the parts of the plot.
Hacksaw Ridge
Desmond Doss grows up in a family ripped apart by the violence of his alcoholic father, a bitter and still grieving
veteran of World War I. The boy senses the anger within himself when he nearly kills his brother in a childhood fight and,
later, when he almost shoots his father while rescuing his mother from his abuse. A member of the Seventh-day Adventist
church, Desmond comes to firmly believe that he must never take a life. He aspires to live by the Ten Commandments on
the framed poster in their house, especially the Sixth Commandment: "Thou shalt not kill."

After Pearl Harbor, their small community of Lynchburg, Virginia, is filled with patriotic fervor. Desmond enlists in
the army as a combat medic. He also registers as a conscientious objector, though he prefers to describe himself as a
"conscientious cooperator." At boot camp with a combat rifle company, he becomes a pariah once he insists that he will
not carry a gun. The other men ridicule his beliefs, call him a coward, and at one point nearly kill him during a late-night
fight. Still, Desmond maintains that he wants to serve; he just will do it by saving lives as a medic rather than taking them.
Still, he is charged with refusing to obey orders and is nearly court-martialed.

Doss eventually goes with his company to the Pacific theater. In the spring of 1945, these soldiers clash with the
Japanese who offer fierce opposition in Okinawa in one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. After climbing a steep,
jagged cliff called Hacksaw Ridge, the Americans are immersed in a chaotic and horrific battle with heavily armed Japanese
soldiers; it would later be called the "rain of fire" because there was so much iron flying around. It becomes the scene of
one of the most remarkable acts of heroism every recorded.

The first conscientious objector to receive the U.S. Medal of Honor; was awarded to Desmond Doss by President
Harry Truman in 1945. During the bloody siege on Hackshaw Ridge, when initially the Americans are overrun and have to
retreat, Doss remains on the battlefield, dodging Japanese bullets and American bombardment from nearby ships, as he
looks for wounded soldiers and then carries them to the cliff; he lowers them down to safety by a rope harness he has
devised. In one night alone, he saves 75 men, including many who had previously tried to shame and humiliate him
because of his refusal to carry a gun. On the next day he returns with his company and demonstrates his courage and
heroism all over again. Doss comes upon a dazed and badly wounded Japanese soldier and compassionately cares for him
before moving on.

During every war, every protest, every community dispute, every criminal act, many people maintain that the
only way to meet violence is with more violence. Yet throughout history, saints and peacemakers have challenged that
presupposition. Nonviolence is an option, they tell us. It raises the profile of nonviolence, conscientious objection, and
other moral stands even in times of war. Desmond Doss reminds us of the words of Hugh Prather: "Stands must be
taken. If I am to respect myself, I must search myself for what I believe is right and take a stand on what I find.
Otherwise I have not gathered together what I have been given; I have not embraced what I have learned. I lack my own
conviction."

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 When one writes a story (whether fiction or creative nonfiction), a good plot will help shape
good characters because the logical arrangement of events of the story will let the characters have
their personalities and tendencies and the readers will know why the characters behave in such a way.

CHARACTERS. These are the beings that will give life to the story by acting it out in the minds
of the readers. In order to have good characters, though, one must have good CHARACTERIZATION
(i.e. HOW the characters will act in certain situations or project emotions).

This characterization may compose of the following: direct description, action and reaction, other
characters’ opinions: dialogue and monologue, and focusing on a character’s distinct or idiosyncratic
behavior (Aguila, 2017).

Activity 5.1 LET’S TRY!

Directions: Give the plot of the story below and complete the story chart.

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6|Page
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BEGINNING

EXPOSITION

RISING
ACTION

CLIMAX

FALLING
ACTION

ENDING

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 Activity 5.1.1
KEEP IT UP!

Directions: Interviewed a person as your subject in your creative nonfiction writing. Let
him/her give you the details of what she wants to share about her/his life. Add descriptive details
about the character (appearance, traits, and other aspects of personality. You will be graded on the
following C’s: clarity, conciseness, correctness, completeness and cohesion.
Name

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 LESSON 5: Using Elements of Creative Nonfiction

LESSON 5.2
Setting and Atmosphere
“The sky was overladen with stars.
If you looked closely there were stars in the grass
as well--dew turned to ice on the tips of grass blades.”
― D'Arcy McNickle, The Surrounded

As we write a story, we also create the world it is based on. It takes us into space and time, the
setting. In nonfiction, the writers make sure that the places they create are based on the real world.
The atmosphere if a piece will bring the people into the world that the author was able to describe.
The setting simply tells us the time, the place, and the duration of the story – as in when,
where, and how long the story will take. On the other hand, the atmosphere is the mood of a story
– one that evokes certain feelings or emotions.
According to Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo:

“The most successful pieces of creative nonfiction are rich in details. Bare facts
are never enough. They need to be fleshed out; they need to be humanized. But
besides giving information, details serve other purposes. Details should be
accurate and informative first. And then must be suggestive or evocative. The
right details arouse emotions, evoke memories, and help to produce the right
response in your reader. Details are extremely important in evoking a sense of
time and place. It must evoke a period as well as location. Descriptive details are
of particular importance for travel writing, the point of which, to begin with, to
literally transport the reader to the place to which the traveller has been”

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Read the selection in focus and answer the following activities given.

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 Activity 5.2 KEEP IT UP
Directions: Answer the following questions. Use separate paper for your answers.

1. What kind of place is Kamarikutan Kape at Galeri? What kind of people go there?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
2. Why did the child seem to be bothered by the pinikpikan?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
3. How would you describe the atmosphere? Cite the details from the text to support your answer.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

4. Why is this place important to the narrator? Give details that suggest the narrator’s attitude
toward Kamarikutan.

_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

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 ______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

5. Which place in your area could be considered an equivalent of Kamarikutan? Explain your
answer.

_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

Activity 5.2.1 KEEP IT UP

Directions: Write an essay about your “Spectacular Vacation”. Use separate paper for your
answer.
Use this as your guide questions:
 What is your dream summer vacation? Where do you want to go? Who do you want to
take with you in this dream vacation?
 What activities do you want to engage in which you have not done yet in your previous
vacation? Do you think it is possible?

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 Activity 5.2.2
KEEP IT UP
Directions: Picture yourself that you are on your ideal vacation (from your essay: Spectacular
Vacation), describe the setting and atmosphere using your senses and fill in the chart below.

SENSES • DESCRIPTION

Sight

Smell

Sound

Touch/Feel

Taste

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 Plot- is the arrangement or sequence of events. It includes: beginning, exposition, rising
action, climax, falling action or resolution and ending.

 Characterization- involves the characters to act or behave depends on a certain situation.

(1st, 2nd and 3rd point of view)

 Setting- is the time and places the story exists.

(could be anywhere as long as it exists in human planet)

 Atmosphere- mood that evokes emotion or feelings of the reader.

(Involves the senses: sight, smell, sound, touch/feel, and taste)

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 REFERENCES
Main Reference (Book):

Aguila, A. A. et.al. (2017). Telling the Truth,The Art of Creative Nonfiction for Senior High School. C & E Publishing,Inc.

Supporting References (Book):

Angeles, M.A.S. (2017). Senior High School Series: Creative Nonfiction. Diwa Learning Systems Inc

Baronda, A.J. (2017). Creative Nonfiction”: JFS Publishing Services

Moratilla, N.C., Ph.D. et.al. (2016). K-12 Compliant, Creative Nonfiction; Claiming Spaces: Understanding, Reading and
Writing Creative Nonfiction. A Textbook on Humanities and Social Sciences.The Phoenix Publishing House Inc.

Israel, L. Q. (2017). Creative Nonfiction.Vibal Group Inc.

SyGaco, S. D. (2017). Writing Techniques in Creative Nonfiction.Great Books Trading

Internet:

Activity Icon. Freepik Company S.L. (2010-2020). https://www.flaticon.com/free-icons/actitvity

Atmosphere Quotes. Goodreads, Inc. (2021) https://www.goodreads.com/

Author Learning Center. (2018).Writing Creative Nonfiction: Definition, Subgenres, and Key Elements.
https://www.authorlearningcenter.com/

Creative Non-Fiction Plots. Cathy Stucker (2006 – 2021). https://www.sellingbooks.com/creative-non-fiction-plots/

Atmosphere. Literary Devices.( 2021). https://literarydevices.net/atmosphere/

Objective Icon. Freepik Company S.L. (2010-2020). https://www.flaticon.com/search?word=Objective last

Plot Quotes. Goodreads, Inc. (2021) https://www.goodreads.com/

Type Writer. Fore, P. (2020).Medium. https://medium.com/

The LibreTexts Libraries. (2020, July 01).Elements of Creative Nonfiction.https://human.libretexts.org/

The Story of An Hour. SparkNotes LLC (2021). https://www.sparknotes.com/

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