1. Theories of Genre 1

2. Define:genre
The word “genre” is borrowed from French and
derived from Latin and Greek – in all three
its basic meaning is
kind, sort, class

3. Daniel
Chandler
(2001)
• explains how in literary and media theory genre is
widely used to refer to
“a distinctive type of ‘text’ ”
• According to Chandler, genres create order
to simplify the mass of available information.
• Creating categories appeals to our need to
organise the chaos around us.

4. John Fiske
(1989)
agrees that genre is
a way of categorising texts.
Texts are divided into categories
based on common elements.
He states that
“Genre attempts to structure some order
into the wide range of texts and
meanings that circulate in our culture
for the convenience of both audience
and producers.”

5. John Fiske
(1989)
• Using this definition, how / why is the concept
of genre useful to
– audiences?
– institutions?
– media students?
• What evidence do you have of your decisions
about genre?
• In what ways were the reasons for your choice
of genre based on audience or institution?

6. Hybridity & Sub-Genres
• All genres have sub-genres (genres within
a genre).
• Texts often provide evidence of
hybridity, where they splice together two
or more genres.
• Both of these mean that genres are divided up
into more specific categories.

7. Barry
Keith
Grant
(1995)
• suggests that hybridity and sub-genres
allow audiences to identify them
specifically by their familiar and…
recognisable characteristics
(the repertoire of the genre or genres or sub-genre)
• The repertoire of characteristics works like a
short-hand communication with the audience

8. Task 1.
Spend 10 minutes highlighting how you’ve
incorporated your genre’s / sub-genre’s / hybrid
genre’s repertoire(s) into your film trailer.
Be specific – aspects of mise-en-scene, stylistic camera
work, narrative themes, editing techniques etc.
Grade Boost(s):
•Outline anywhere you’ve challenged conventions in a code.
•If you’ve created a hybrid genre, outline how you’ve interwoven
the two repertoires to provide the viewer with familiar pleasures.

9. Task 2.
Now write 2 paragraphs:
• What is genre? (refer to Chandler, Fiske & Grant)
• How does your work fit into a genre, sub-genre
or hybrid genre?
• Share your two paragraphs with the person sitting next to you.
• Take one thing from your partner’s paragraphs that you could
incorporate into your work (language, idea, structure etc.).

10. Really, you’ve just written
the intro to a question on genre!