PB1B: Exploring Different Genres

As we talked about in PB1A, Genres are everywhere and can be found in anything. We talked about the different rhetorical features and conventions of a genre. Brainstorming is a great way to come up with creative and known conventions for a given genre. People can also use various genre generators. Some of the generators we will use have specific genres attached to them. We will look at…

1.     SCIgen: “program that generates random Computer Science research papers, including graphs, figures, and citations. It uses a hand-written Context-free grammar to form all elements of the papers. Their aim is to maximize amusement, rather than coherence.” (SCIgen- An Automatic CS Paper Generator)

2.     Comic Strips: a sequence of drawings in boxes that tell an amusing story, typically printed in a newspaper or comic book

3.     Memes: an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, especially imitation

4.     One additional source (Wikipedia post): informative post discussing a certain topic, event, word, or person.

First off, I wanted to come up with what I thought would be the conventions for each of the listed topics. The SCIgen papers I thought would have the basic format of an essay (introduction, few body paragraphs, and a conclusion). I also believed that since it was a science essay, it would include charts to direct the reader as to what the author is describing. Lastly, I thought that the essay would have in-text links to dire t people to the author’s research. After looking at the genre carefully, I noticed many new conventions that I would have never thought of. One of the main conventions I missed was how the author almost had broken up the body paragraphs even further, into sub-conventions. This essay also did not have the formatting that I believed it would have. It was set up more like an article with bold text stating the main topics and showing more images than I believed it would. 

The second genre I researched was comic strips. I brainstormed a few conventions that I believe will be the conventions of this genre. These include having a storyline, superheroes, seen in newspapers, teaching a lesson, and making the reader laugh. After delving deeper into the comic strip genre, I noticed that some of my conventions were just stereotypes and others was dead on. The main convention I got right was it having a storyline. The storyline helps to carry along the plot. One of the main conventions I missed was the comic having animated drawings that moved the story along. The artwork gives the reader context and helps them follow along with the story because some of the dialogue is in the artwork. This genre has a more distinct look to it and can be found anywhere. 

The third genre generator topic was memes and I went along with the same process. I believe that some of the main conventions are having a funny picture and/or gif, punch line, and relating to modern-day struggles. After exploring the meme generator, I noticed that most of the conventions I listed were true. They all have an image and/or gif to go along with the language. They also, sometimes, just use an image to relay a feeling the sharer has at the time. The memes included in this generator are some of the most popular across the board and are seen all over social media platforms. This genre is one that I have the most interesting because it is so relevant to today and is the one I see on a regular basis. 

The genre that I chose to explore is a Wikipedia post. This genre is used by people all the time to look up the most random facts and information about a topic. Even though I do not use this as a reliable source for schoolwork, I do use it when I am referencing pop culture or even if I am in a conversation that I need quick information on a certain topic. Some of the conventions found in this genre are image(s) of the topic, basic information, dates, background, examples, references used, and numerous different subtopics. This genre is known to so many people and we see these conventions all throughout these informative posts.