There is a tendency, especially in an English
Department such as ours that focuses more on literature and creative writing,
to think of genre as something related to creative writing and literature (see Merriam-Webster
& Dictionary.com).
However, genre is a lot more than that. Wikipedia does a better job describing
genre and here is a brief overview of
genre I created some time ago. I really like this description of genre on
Wikipedia: “Genres are formed by
conventions that change over time.”
Some key readings
that I think will help you understand genre:
·
Audience
·
Chapter 1: Assessing Audience and
Purpose
Some key points to take away from your
reading: Bitzer
argues that the situation controls the
type of rhetorical response (the genre) that takes place. Bawarshi uses the
metaphor of an ecosystem to describe genre and its relationship to community.
Check out this
video about rhetorical situation.
As Wikipedia notes, “genres are not always precisely definable,” but understanding
genre is essential to your role as professional writers because “genre
considerations are one of the most important factors in determining what a
person will see or read” and genre “creates an expectation.” Your understanding
and execution of the purpose, form, and conventions of a
particular genre for a particular rhetorical situation will reflect on you
individually, the group (business, organization, community) you represent, and
the achievement of your purpose and goals.
Think about how horror fans might feel about this story:
 |
| From: http://media.photobucket.com/image/recent/laurajosephsen/Genre.png |
Does it meet the expectations and conventions of the genre?
Short video about genre and rhetorical situation.
When you join a new community you will need to
learn the genre conventions and expectations of that community. You can do this
by studying artifacts (examples), talking with other writers, and getting
feedback from representatives of your intended audience.
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