Narrative Text – Definition, Structure, Elements, Characteristics, Types & Functions

Definition of Narrative Text

The narrative text is a type of text that contains a story that is told through a plot of events arranged in chronological order or causality or cause and effect. This text is one type of text that has many derivatives. The derivatives include fantasy story texts, fable texts, historical stories, news in narrative form, etc.

This statement is in line with what was expressed by the Ministry of Education and Culture team (2017, p. 194) that a narrative text is a text that includes all types of written or spoken words that contain elements of the story. Apart from other types of derivative texts, we ​​are also tested to be involved with levels in everyday life. For example, talking with friends while telling an incident is also a storytelling activity that we are narrating orally.

Then, the Ministry of Education and Culture Team (2017, p. 50) added that narrative is a fictional story that develops events or events. The story is told sequentially, starting from the background to the peak of the incident.

Meanwhile, Okke (2015, p. 52) states that narrative is a series of events that occur to a character (humans, animals, plants, or objects) which can be real events, even though they are called fictitious. Characterized by a time relationship, events are arranged chronologically.

So it can be concluded that narrative text is a text that conveys a story in the form of a series of events that occur in character, starting from the background of the event to the peak of the event and its completion.

Narrative Text Structure

The narrative text consists of several parts that make it a complete text and different from other texts. In general, Kosasih (2016, pp. 300-302) says that the narrative structure is divided into several parts, which include:

1.      Introduction to story situations (exposition, orientation)

In this section, the author introduces the characters, and the relationship between the characters, to arrange the scenes that will lead them to the plot of events.

2.      Event disclosure

This part of the narrative structure presents the initial events that cause the characters' various problems, conflicts, or difficulties.

3.      Towards conflict (rising action)

There is an increase in depression, excitement, or excitement until the emergence of various situations that cause the character's difficulty to increase towards the height of the conflict.

4.      The peak of the conflict (turning point)

The peak of the conflict, also known as the climax, is the most horrendous or thrilling part of the narrative, where the story is at the peak of the conflict.

5.      Completion (evaluation, resolution)

This section reviews the entire explanation or assessment of the attitudes or fate that befell the characters after experiencing the peak of the conflict at the climax.

6.      Coda

This section is optional in the form of comments on the entire story's content, which is the closing of the story.

Narrative Text Elements

Keraf (2010, p. 45) states that the narrative consists of several constituent elements. These elements are as follows.

1. The theme is the subject of discussion, and the basis for developing the story told by the author.
2. Background, namely the time, social environment, and the place where the events are told.
3. Characterizations, namely how the character and depiction of the characters are contained in the narrative essay.
4. The plot is a pattern or series of events or events that try to solve the conflict in the narrative.

Characteristics of Narrative Text

Like other texts, the narrative has several special characteristics that distinguish it from other text genres. According to (Keraf 2010, p. 136), the characteristics of the narrative are as follows.

1. Highlighting elements of action or action and arranged in a certain time sequence.
2. Attempts to answer the question: what is going on?
3. There is conflict because the narrative is built by a storyline, and the plot will not be boring if there is no conflict.

In addition, Semi (2013, p. 31) reveals several other characteristics of narrative texts as follows.

1. In the form of stories or stories about events to the author's experience.
2. Events or events from the story conveyed can be in the form of real events or limited to imagination to a combination of the two.
3. The narrative is structured around conflict, without which the plot would be less interesting.
4. Contains aesthetic value
5. Emphasizes the chronological order of the plots.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education and Culture Team (2017, p. 50) stated that the general characteristics of narrative texts are as follows.

1. The narrative has a story that contains the development of events or events.
2. The series of events in narrative text stories are driven by the law of cause and effect. The story develops from the introduction stage (what, who, and where the incident occurred), the emergence of conflict, and the completion/end of the story. This series of stories is called plot.
3. Narrative texts have characters with characters who experience a series of events.
4. The narrative has a theme or main idea that is the center of the development of the overall story.
5. Having a mandate related to the values ​​of life and its nature must be inferred from the content of the story (not conveyed directly).

Narrative Text Function

Based on the goals and benefits that can be felt when writing or reading narrative texts, the functions of this text are as follows.

1. Telling a story through a series of storylines and other elements.
2. In certain types of narrative text, the text serves to expand the knowledge of the reader or listener about something (historical text, narrative news, etc.).
3. The delivery of social messages or messages through the character of the characters and the various events that occur in them.
4. Explain in detail about an event to the discussion of its causes.

Narrative Text Language Rules

Each type of text must have rules or special features of the language used, including narrative text. Kosasih (2016, p. 305) reveals that the rules of narrative language are as follows.

1. Many use sentences that have a past meaning.
2. Tend to use a lot of words that state the order of time, commonly called chronological conjunctions.
3. Use verbs that describe an action.
4. Rich in verbs that show indirect sentences to tell the story of a character brought by the author.
5. Using a verb that states something that is thought or felt by the character (mental verb).
6. Usually, the writer acts directly in the first person and is involved in the story in question, so he will use many first-person words to convey the story, such as me, me, and we.
7. It could also be that the author is only in the third person so that he acts as an observer. Therefore, the writing will use a lot of third-person pronouns such as he, they,

Narrative Text Type

Of course, if we talk about the type of narrative text, many genres of text depend on narrative text in its delivery. The types of genres are as simple as:

1. Fantasy Story Text
2. History story text
3. Inspirational story
4. Fable text
5. Saga text
6. Short story
7. Novel, etc.

However, if we draw the division at the root of narrative discourse (text), according to Keraf (2010, pp. 136-138), narrative text is divided into two main types, which will be explained in the explanation below.

1. Expository Narrative (Informational Narrative)

An expository narrative is a narrative that aims to deliver accurate information about an event with the aim of expanding the reader's knowledge through the story. The writer tells an event based on actual data in the expository narrative.

The actor who is highlighted is usually only one person and is told from the beginning to the present or until the end of his life. This narrative essay is colored by exposition, so various exposition provisions also apply here. These provisions include the use of language that is logical, fact-based, and objective.

In essence, the expository narrative has the following characteristics:

1. Expand knowledge.
2. Delivering information about an event.
3. Based on reasoning to reach a rational agreement.
4. The language tends to be informative so that it focuses on denotative words.

2. Suggestive Narrative (Artistic Narrative)

The suggestive narrative is a narrative that tries to describe an intention so that it is as if the reader or listener saw and felt it themselves. This narrative also usually tries to give an indirect message.

In contrast to expository narrative, the purpose of this type of narrative is to give meaning to events or events as an experience, not to expand knowledge. The characteristics of suggestive narrative are:

1. Convey meaning.
2. Engaging imagination.
3. Reasoning functions as a means of conveying meaning.
4. The language tends to be figurative so that it focuses on connotative words.

Example of Narrative Text

An example of a narrative text and its structure that has proper linguistic rules can be seen at the following link:

Example of Narrative Text and Its Structure (Various Themes)