Biography definition and examples

What are the 4 types of biography

Home » Writing » Autobiography vs. Biography vs. The three primary formats of a memory book , used to tell a life story, are a biography, an autobiography, and a memoir. Distinguishing between the three can feel a bit confusing since they all share several similarities. But there are some distinct differences. Simply put, a biography is the life history of an individual, written by someone else.

And a memoir is a collection of memories written by the person themselves. The main difference between a biography vs. A biography could be someone still living today, or it could be the subject of a person who lived years ago. Biographers use a number of research sources, including interviews, letters, diaries, photographs, essays, reference books, and newspapers.

While a biography is usually in the written form, it can be produced in other formats such as music composition or film.

Types of biography

If the target person of the biography is not alive, then the storytelling requires an immense amount of research. Interviews might be required to collect information from historical experts, people who knew the person e. In biographies where the person is still alive, the writer can conduct several interviews with the target person to gain insight on their life.

The goal of a biography is to take the reader through the life story of the person, including their childhood into adolescence and teenage years, and then their early adult life into the rest of their years.