The sharing of stories, beliefs, cultures, and ideas by word of mouth Oral Tradition The sharing of stories, beliefs, cultures, and ideas by word of mouth Oral Traditions are shared with stories, songs, and poems. They share and maintain our culture, history, tradition, and ideas. They help us explain our world.

HYPERBOLE TYPE OF FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE THE DELIBERATE USE OF EXAGGERATION OR OVERSTATEMENT USUALLY USED TO MAKE PEOPLE LAUGH I AM SO HUNGRY I COULD EAT A HORSE. THAT MAN IS STRONGER THAN AN OX. Remember Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout.

PERSONIFICATION Another figure of speech The giving of human characteristics to a nonhuman subject. Remember “The Desert Is My Mother.”

THEME AND MORAL Theme is the underlying message about life. (You must figure it out.) Moral is a directly stated lesson about life.

FABLES Stories featuring animals that speak and act like humans Often end with a moral that is stated Example: Aesop’s Fables The Boy Who Cried Wolf The Fox and the Grapes

MYTHS Explain the actions of gods, goddesses, and the heroes who interact with them Can be used to explain natural events Greek and Roman

EPICS Long narrative poem or story About larger-than-life hero On a quest or dangerous journey Important to the history of a nation or culture Example: Beowulf or Hercules

FOLK TALES Stories about ordinary people Reveal traditions and values of a culture Teach a lesson Example: Johnny Appleseed

LEGENDS Traditional stories about the past Based on real-life but facts have been twisted Now people are larger-than-life Examples: King Arthur and Robin Hood

TALL TALES A type of folk tale with hyperbole Focus on a hero who performs impossible feats Example: Paul Bunyan