YOUNG ADULT

LITERATURE
WHO ARE YOUNG ADULTS?

• The ages of 12 to 18 years is identified as the group for whom YAL is written and to which it
has its greatest appeal.
• Within this age range there are two distinct categories:
• 12 – 15 years
• 15 -18 years
• Why?
• The younger group is excited to read about themselves and the experiences of being a teenager.
• The older group is generally eager to leave their teen years behind and wants to read about
more mature and pragmatic experiences of life. They also want to be recognised as adults.
• As a result, each of these age groups requires many different sorts of stories written for them.
DEFINITION OF YAL

“Young adult literature is literature wherein the protagonist is either a teenager or one who
approaches problems from a teenage perspective. YAL novels are generally of moderate length
and told by a first person. Typically, they would describe initiation into the adult world, or the
surmounting of a contemporary problem forced upon the protagonist (s) by the adult world.
Though generally written for a teenage reader, such novels – like all fine literature – address the
entire spectrum of life. “ (Steven van Staay)
DEFINITION OF THE GENRE YAL

• YAL offers teenagers something that adult literature does not.

• YAL is created especially for YA’s, hoping to give them a more mature understanding of self
and the world.
• The stories tend to have a sense of immediacy, rather than nostalgia, and
• their focus is on the experience of an individual, usually a teenage protagonist.
• YAL does not always provide the answers, but
• rather portrays a young person in search of them.
GENRE CLASSES/TYPES OF YAL

• Genres for YAL span most of those covered by adult fiction. What distinguishes them from
adult fiction is that the main characters are usually children or teens dealing with teen issues.
e.g.
• Adventure, chick lit, classics, contemporary fiction, diaries, dystopian (A Clockwork Orange),
family and relationships, fantasy, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender), graphic
novels, horror, historical fiction, humorous stories, mystery, poetry, paranormal, romance,
science fiction, short stories, steampunk, verse novels.
DISTINCTIVE
FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS OF YAL
1. STORIES ARE TOLD FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF YOUNG PEOPLE.
Most YA fiction is told from a first person perspective and is written from the eyes of a young adult.
There may be multiple plot lines in a single work, but they will all most likely be told from the
perspective of a teenager.
Essentially, teenagers like to read about other teenagers.
Even if the story does not centre on a young adult, it will often be told from a youngster’s perspective.
e.g. To Kill a Mockingbird: Atticus & Tom Robinson’s court trial, but told from the perspective of
Scout, a young girl; Young adults relate more easily to the tale.
FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS CONT…

2. YOUNG ADULT STORIES OFTEN GET RID OF ALL ADULT FIGURES

This allows the young adult to shine in centre stage and receive credit for all the work they
accomplish throughout the story.
Adults are completely missing or play only a minor role.
E.g. Lord of the Flies. The boys hunting one another would not have happened if an adult had
been around to guide them.
If an adult happens to be around, he/she is rarely the parent of one of the characters.
More often, adults in a story will be more of a mentor figure that the teen has sought out and
approaches on his/her own terms
FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS CONT…

3. YAL IS FAST PACED.

• Teens often struggle to read for enjoyment.
• Most YA fiction is quick to read and quick to develop.
• In order to achieve this task, the young adult genre is often marked by
• a limited number of characters and narrative events.
• The language flows naturally and changes and develops with the current times – popularity in
speech and trends is often important in YA fiction.
FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS CONT…

4. YAL INCLUDES A VARIETY OF GENRES AND SUBJECTS.

Young adults often take interest in: non-fiction, poetry, drama, science fiction, historical fiction,
and even graphical novels, to name just a few.
Teens’ tastes vary just as much as adults; they like to read about a variety of subjects and issues in
a number of different literary forms.
One of the greatest values of literature is learning about places and people unlike yourself. Teens
recognise that and can immerse themselves in expanding their horizons.
Educational research shows that the teen years are a great time, developmentally, for teens to
learn about life outside of themselves.
 FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS CONT…
5. YAL IS OPTIMISTIC AND CHARACTERS MAKE WORTHY ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
Adults often get turned off by a teenager protagonist that acts like they know more than adults, but in
fact, this is a major appeal to teens.
The ability to succeed on their own terms and in their own way really appeals to young adults.
In fact, change and growth is perhaps the most common theme appearing in young adult literature.
In most cases the protagonist loses innocence as part of the passage from childhood to adulthood.
This gaining of maturity would, potentially, affect them for the rest of their lives.
The inherent need to learn, grow and overcome, appeals to teens of all ages.
FEATURES/CHARACTERISTICS CONT…
6 YAL DEAL WITH REAL EMOTIONS.
At a time in life when hormones often rule, teens take particular interest in emotions and want to
see them accurately represented in the fiction they read.
Books often deal with similar emotional struggles such as:
acquiring more mature social skills
achieving emotional independence from parents and other adults
developing personal ideology and ethical standard
achieving a masculine or feminine sex role, etc.
By following the development of these feelings in a fictional character, teens are often able to
work out their own angst and emotional struggles
7 LITERARY ELEMENTS IN YAL
1. Character
2. Setting
3. Narrative
4. Plot
5. Conflict
6. Theme
7. Voice
* Look up the meaning of each of these elements in A Glossary of Literary Terms so you will be
able
to explain what they mean in detail in a test/exam. *
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