What is an Anecdote?
An anecdote is a narrative about a person or an incident that has an intent to convey a point that is amusing, intriguing, thought-provoking, and such. Anecdotes are not just a common part of everyday life, but they’re also used by fictional writers to make their writing more engaging. Most anecdotes are focused on a central theme or a message.
Although anecdotes are common in informal writing, they’re also used in the case of academic writing assignments like descriptive essays.
Etymology and Definition of an Anecdote
The word “anecdote” is derived from the Greek word anecdota,which means “accounts or stories unpublished.” Anecdotes used to be secret and private stories that were mostly narrated to a person or a group of people.
Below is an example of an anecdote from Dark Witch by Nora Roberts:
- “I’ll tell you they were in love. Young and wild for each other. Happy in it, though they scraped and squabbled. She was going into seventeen when they came together the first time. It was after they’d been together the mark came on him. He didn’t tell her. I don’t know whether to blame him for that, but he didn’t tell her. And when she found out, she was angry, but more, she was devastated.”
Types of Anecdotes
Anecdotes are used by writers to evoke certain emotions from readers, which is often referred to as mood in literature. Depending on the type of emotion a writer wants to elicit, they can use different types of anecdotes.
Below are some commonly used anecdotes in literature:
1. Humorous
Something as simple as a joke or any incident or story narrated to elicit laughter from people can be considered a humorous anecdote.
2. Inspirational
Recounts that are meant to motivate people are known as inspirational anecdotes.
3. Cautionary
Most cautionary tales or fables with morals use cautionary anecdotes to warn the audience or readers of possible dangers or consequences that could result from following a certain path or course of action.
4. Reminiscent
This type of anecdote is commonly used in college essays or other forms of writing or speech that makes the narrator, speaker, or writer reminisce about something or someone.
5. Philosophical
As the name suggests, philosophical anecdotes are those that urge or force people to think about any concept or idea such as life, death, morality, etc.
Uses of Anecdote
Anecdotes are not limited to one genre or subject. One can share an anecdote about just about any topic.
An anecdote can be used to:
- Introduce an idea or a character in a story.
- Flesh out a character or add layers to a character.
- Support a study or an experiment. Relying on anecdotal evidence (which is based on personal experience) is a common practice when it comes to scientific research and studies.
- Make one’s writing more interesting. Anecdotes are not just random stories. They can also be used as a literary device to make a piece of writing more engaging.
An anecdote can influence the tone, the mood, and the style of one’s writing, which makes it a useful writing technique. Knowing how to craft an anecdote is a good-to-have skill that can help take one’s writing to the next level.
