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Biographies are a form of literature that is considered nonfictional, the theme of a biography is usually the story of an individuals life. Biographies are one of the oldest forms of literary expression. Biographies attempt to re-create through words, the life of a human being using historical or personal perspective from the point of view of the author. Types of information used to write a biography include retained in memory as well as written, oral, and pictorial material.

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Biography, form of literature, commonly considered nonfictional, the subject of which is the life of an individual. One of the oldest forms of literary expression, it seeks to re-create in words the life of a human being-as understood from the historical or personal perspective of the author-by drawing upon all available evidence, including that retained in memory as well as written, oral, and pictorial material.

Aspects

Historical

Biography is sometimes regarded as a branch of history, and earlier biographical writings-such as the 15th-century Mémoires of the French councellor of state, Philippe de Commynes, or George Cavendish's 16th-century life of Thomas Cardinal Wolsey-have often been treated as historical material rather than as literary works in their own right. Some entries in ancient Chinese chronicles included biographical sketches; imbedded in the Roman historian Tacitus's Annals is the most famous biography of the emperor Tiberius; conversely, Sir Winston Churchill's magnificent life of his ancestor John Churchill, first duke of Marlborough, can be read as a history (written from a special point of view) of Britain and much of Europe during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-14). Yet there is general recognition today that history and biography are quite distinct forms of literature. History usually deals in generalizations about a period of time (for example, the Renaissance), about a group of people in time (the English colonies in North America), about an institution (monasticism during the Middle Ages). Biography more typically focuses upon a single human being and deals in the particulars of that person's life.

Both biography and history, however, are often concerned with the past, and it is in the hunting down, evaluating, and selection of sources that they are akin. In this sense biography can be regarded as a craft rather than an art: techniques of research and general rules for testing evidence can be learned by anyone and thus need involve comparatively little of that personal commitment associated with art.

A biographer in pursuit of an individual long dead is usually hampered by a lack of sources: it is often impossible to check or verify what written evidence there is; there are no witnesses to cross-examine. No method has yet been developed by which to overcome such problems. Each life, however, presents its own opportunities as well as specific difficulties to the biographer: the ingenuity with which the biographer handles gaps in the record-by providing information, for example, about the age that casts light upon the subject-has much to do with the quality of the resulting work. James Boswell knew comparatively little about Samuel Johnson's earlier years; it is one of the greatnesses of his Life of Samuel Johnson LL.D. (1791) that he succeeded, without inventing matter or deceiving the reader, in giving the sense of a life progressively unfolding. Another masterpiece of reconstruction in the face of little evidence is A.J.A. Symons' biography of the English author and eccentric Frederick William Rolfe, The Quest for Corvo (1934). A further difficulty is the unreliability of most collections of papers, letters, and other memorabilia edited before the 20th century. Not only did editors feel free to omit and transpose materials, but sometimes the authors of documents revised their personal writings for the benefit of posterity, often falsifying the record and presenting their biographers with a difficult situation when the originals were no longer extant.

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The biographer writing the life of a person recently dead is often faced with the opposite problem: an abundance of living witnesses and a plethora of materials, which include the subject's papers and letters, sometimes transcriptions of telephone conversations and conferences, as well as the record of interviews granted to the biographer by the subject's friends and associates. Frank Friedel, for example, in creating a biography of the U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt, had to wrestle with something like 40 tons of paper. But finally, when writing the life of any person, whether long or recently dead, the biographer's chief responsibility is vigorously to test the authenticity of the collected materials by whatever rules and techniques are available. When the subject of a biography is still alive and a contributor to the work, the biographer's task is to examine the subject's perspective against multiple, even contradictory sources.

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Biography, form of literature, commonly considered nonfictional, the subject of which is the life of an individual. One of the oldest forms of literary expression, it seeks to re-create in words the life of a human being-as understood from the historical or personal perspective of the author-by drawing upon all available evidence, including that retained in memory as well as written, oral, and pictorial material.

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Defining Characteristics for Biographies 

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Defining Characteristics for Biographies 

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1. Biographies are from stand structure and usually follow a chronological order to recap an individuals life.

2. The content of a biography are factually and based on the story of the life of an individual.

3. The style of biography is told from the point of view of a narrator.

4. Biographies are told in interesting or inspiring ways and sometimes used to inspire the reader to be more like the individual that is written about.

5. Biographies are also designed to motivate the reader to change their perspective and to see things from a different point of view.

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Definition of Biography

What is agreed with biography? Definition of Biography is an article that describes the story and information about someone's story or story about someone's life.

Etymologically, the word "Biography" comes from Greek, namely "Bios" which means life and "Graphien" which means writing. Biography is kind of writing that discusses someone's life.

Choosing biography is only for figures who are considered important and have interests for many people. Biography can be in the form of short writing in one short article, but it can also be in the form of a book or more than one book.

A personal biography in the form of a short article briefly describes the facts of someone's life. While the biography in the form of a book contains various information and facts about someone who's told in detail and written in an attractive language style.

The Characteristics of Biography

We can recognize a biographical writing by paying attention to its characteristics. The biographical features are as follows :

1. Biography has a standard structure in its manufacture, including orientation, reorientation, and events.

2. The contents of the biography are made based on facts (factual) according to the life story of the characters told.

3. The style of biography writing is made in the form of narration so that it is more interesting to read.

4. There are interesting and inspiring stories in the lives of biographers so that they can influence the reader.

5. Biography also contains things that can motivate someone to imitate the life of the character in the biography.

Biography Writing Structure

In general, the structure of the biographical text consists of three parts. Referring to the definition of biography, while the structure of the biography is as follows:

1. Orientation, the part in biographical writing that contains the introduction of characters or the initial description of the character being told.

2. Events and Problems, parts in biographical writings that contain events that have been experienced by characters. This includes the problems faced in trying to achieve goals, as well as the inspiring experiences experienced by the characters.

3. Reorientation, the closing part of a biography and its optional nature. In this section the author gives his views on the characters that told in the biography.

Types of Biography

Biography can be divided into three groups. In accordance with the understanding of the above biography, several types of biographies are as follows:

1. Biography Based on Writing Permission

1. Authorized Biography, a biography whose writing has obtained permission or knowledge from the character who will be told the story of his life.

2. Unauthorized Biography, a biography whose writing is not with the permission and knowledge of the character who will be told the story of his life. Generally unauthorized biography writing is done because the character to be told has died.

2. Biography based on its contents

1. Life Travel Biography, a biography that contains the life journey of a character in full or takes some parts of the life journey that are considered memorable.

2. Career Biography, a biography that contains about a character's career journey from the beginning to the current career. Or it can also tell a character's career journey in achieving certain success.

3. Biography Based on Issues Discussed

1. Political Biography, a biography that contains the life story of a country's figure from a political point of view. Even though through research, in general political biographies contain the interests of the writer or character told.

2. Intellectual Biography, a biography that describes the life story of intellectual figures viewed from a scientific point of view. Intellectual biography is made through various researches and writings using scientific language.

3. Based on journalism, the biography of the writing obtained from the results of direct interviews with figures who will be written the story.

4. Publisher Biography

1. The book itself, a biography of a character who is made a book by the publisher with production costs starting from writing, printing and marketing is borne by itself. The purpose of writing this biography is to be sold in the market or get public attention.

2. Subsidy books, the biographies of figures whose writing costs and production are borne by the sponsor. When viewed from the commercial side, such biographies will not sell or the selling price is too high so it is not affordable.

Thus a brief explanation of the notion of biography, characteristics, structure, and several types of biography. Hopefully this article is useful and improve your knowledge.

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Definition of Biography, Characteristics, Structure and Types of Biography

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What is agreed with biography? Definition of Biography is an article that describes the story and information about someone's story or story about someone's life. Etymologically, the word "Biography" comes from Greek, namely "Bios" which means life and "Graphien" which means writing. Biography is kind of writing that discusses someone's life.

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Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Kwesi Johnson illustrated by Vashti Harrison. Anchor Text 

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Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Kwesi Johnson illustrated by Vashti Harrison. Anchor Text 

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This biography written by Vashti Harrison is short enough for elementary school students but the message can be enjoyed by children of all ages. The individuals written about in this book include, Benjamin Banneker, the inventor of the first full sized clock; Thurgood Marshal, the first African-American member of the U.S. Supreme Court; and André Leon Talley, who was an editor for Vogue. Harrison's literary expression is very well thought out and thorough and includes several mini-biographies at the end of the book as well.

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Follow Your Dreams, Little One by Vashti Harrison.

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Follow Your Dreams, Little One by Vashti Harrison.

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This biography is also written by Vashti Harrison and is very similar to the previous book I used from the same author but has more people with different stories. If I use the first book as an anchor text I would use the second book in the text set.

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Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison

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Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison

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This biography is also written by Vashti Harrison and is very similar to the previous book I used from the same author to be the anchor text. But has woman from African-American history with different stories. I would marry this book to the other books I chose from this author because it will give the female students an example of historical women who made a difference. I like this book a lot for 3rd-5th grade and I will most likely buy most of if not all of this authors books that are similar to this topic if I end up teaching that age range.

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Video read aloud for Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Vashti Harrison. This is the Benjamin Banneker chapter. 

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Video read aloud for Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Vashti Harrison. This is the Benjamin Banneker chapter. 

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I would use this for younger children maybe 3rd grade or younger. I would read it to the grade levels under 3rd because the text is too complex for the younger children but the message is still a good one for a lesson.

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Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History-   Benjamin Banneker Read Aloud Black History

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Read aloud for Mamie on the Mound: A Woman in Baseball's Negro Leagues By Leah Henderson

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Read aloud for Mamie on the Mound: A Woman in Baseball's Negro Leagues By Leah Henderson

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Although this text is more digestible for your students probably 2nd grade and up having the visual on the board in the classroom gives us the opportunity to read aloud with each other.

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Mamie on the Mound: A Woman in Baseball's Negro Leagues By Leah Henderson. Anchor Text

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Mamie on the Mound: A Woman in Baseball's Negro Leagues By Leah Henderson. Anchor Text

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This book by Leah Henderson talks about the the life of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson and how she was the first female pitcher in professional baseball. The book recaps the grit and toughness Mamie had and how she was able to achieve her dream against all odds. The book is illustrated very well with captivating photos and this book would be best suited for students in the 2nd or 3rd grade.

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Read aloud for Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-ins by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich  

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Read aloud for Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-ins by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich  

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This is a read aloud for my third anchor text. I would use this as a visual representation and guided read for the classroom.

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Someday Is Now | Clara Luper | Oklahoma City Sit-Ins | Read Aloud | Story

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Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library By Carole Boston Weatherford. Anchor Text. 

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Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library By Carole Boston Weatherford. Anchor Text. 

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This book is about a man named Arturo Schomburg who during the Harlem Renaissance collected books, poems, and many other literary works from African authors. After collecting so much that his house was filled he partnered with the New York Public Library to create the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. This is great book for showing different perspectives and showing students how interesting reading can be and how culture is show through literary works.

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Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-ins by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich. Anchor Text.   

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Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-ins by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich. Anchor Text.   

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This book is written by by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich tells the story of Clara Luper who, with the NAACP youth Council in Oklahoma City began sit-ins to desegregate lunch counters at the Katz Drugstore on Aug. 19, 1958. This story is a great example of how a biography can inspire the reader and will also be a good example of a story to read to show students different perspectives and introduce the idea of social issues. I would use the book around 2nd or 3rd grade because the reading is not too complex but the message will keep them engaged.

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Read aloud for Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library By Carole Boston Weatherford. 

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Read aloud for Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library By Carole Boston Weatherford. 

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I love this text and like the idea of having a visual read aloud for my anchor texts but I could not find a video that I really liked. This one would work but I would potentially record something of my own that shows the text more so that the students could read along.

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Read Aloud for my last anchor text Clemente! By Willie Perdomo 

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Read Aloud for my last anchor text Clemente! By Willie Perdomo 

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This video is good but not great but shows the closest views of the book. I actually own this book so it would be easier to read aloud in the front of the classroom and copy the pages so the students could read with me at their desk.

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"Clemente!" by Willie Perdomo and Bryan Collier

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Clemente! By Willie Perdomo. Anchor Text

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Clemente! By Willie Perdomo. Anchor Text

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This book by Willie Perdomo is a summary of the life and achievements of Roberto Clemente. This book speaks about how not only was Clemente a great baseball player but and even better human being. This book can be a good example to teach different point of views that an author can speak from. This book includes some phrases in Spanish so it would be good for students who speak Spanish to see familiar words that may keep them even more engaged. This book would be good for 1st or 2nd grade.

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Racing Against the Odds: The Story of Wendell Scott, Stock Car Racing's African-American Champion By Carole Boston Weatherford

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Racing Against the Odds: The Story of Wendell Scott, Stock Car Racing's African-American Champion By Carole Boston Weatherford

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This book from Carole Boston Weatherford is the story of Wendell Scott who was Nascar's first African American race winner. Scott overcame not having the resources or equipment that many other drivers had and was still able to win a race. I like this book because not only does it teach the lesson that you can be against all odds you can achieve whatever you put your mind to. I like this book for 1st or 2nd graders especially ones that are interested in cars.

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Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed is a story about Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to go into space. This story is an excellent source of inspiration and shows students that no matter what, you can do anything you are willing to work for. This is a simple book and is best suited for grade levels Kindergarten through 2nd grade.

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No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas by Tonya Bolden

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No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas by Tonya Bolden

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No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas by Tonya Bolden is a story about a man that was born into slavery and worked to become one of the most successful potato farmers to live. This book is a good one to me because he shows you can make an impact without having to be an athlete or a scientist. This book has simple text and would be good for students Kindergarten through 2nd grade.

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In a classroom you can teach about Junius Grooves who was born in a different time and use his story to show what that time period was like. You could use Mae Jemison's story to show the struggles she went though to be the first to ever do something.

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You can show students different point of views through showing them the narrator point of view in biographies.

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You can teach critical thinking through students having to compare and contrast the different lives of historical figures through information learned in biographies.

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Biographies Can Be Used as an Enrichment for Your Lesson. 

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Biographies Can Be Used as an Enrichment for Your Lesson. 

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Biographies can be used as an enrichment for your lesson on a specific time period. When teaching students about the civil rights movement you can use biographies for Martin Luther King or Harriet Tubman to help bring more life to the text and further engage the students.

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Students could practice writing by writing their own biographies and create more emotional writing by writing about what they want to do when they are older.