Genre and Rhetorical Situation: Choosing an Appropriate Genre
Purpose: This exercise helps students understand that genre is linked to rhetorical situation, and that the choice of genre is one a writer must carefully decide using a variety of factors. Key to making the appropriate choice is audience, message, and occasion – all factors in the rhetorical situation. In order for students to write successfully beyond the College Composition classroom, they must understand how to make choices appropriate to the writing situation. Understanding the factors that determine the rhetorical situation and how genre and audience connect within each situation, will help students make choices that will lead to successful writing in other contexts.
*Some knowledge of Lloyd Bitzer’s article “The Rhetorical Situation” is especially helpful for this activity—whether it’s the teacher’s familiarity or whether the article is assigned as reading is up to you.
Description: Students work at “stations” in the classroom, using the same overall scenario to write using a different genre for each rhetorical situation the scenario has created. The scenario is a car accident which requires communication to different audiences, and forces students to think about the rhetorical situation and how it changes based on audience and genre.
Suggested Time: 50 minutes; plus 20 minutes suggested for reflection writing which can be assigned in–class or as homework
Procedure: Before class starts, post each scenario (on paper) at different points in the classroom, creating a “writing station” for each. Forcing students to physically move between stations emphasizes the change in rhetorical situation, and it allows students to write at their own pace and collaborate with a new group at each station.
Note: For computer classrooms, adapt this exercise by creating one handout/Discussion Board post that students can use as a guideline to write on computers. Add in a small group discussion about the assignment before they being writing so there is an element of collaboration, the assignment is understood, and questions can be brought up (or stop the class for a minute after each “station” to discuss the next.
(Instructions to give students: A message is communicated successfully if it is received by its intended audience. The message conveyed in two different genres might involve the same content, but the conventions used to communicate this message may be drastically different depending on factors of the rhetorical situation. In this exercise we’ll analyze the ways conventions are used to communicate messages, the underlying assumptions associated with different genres, and the choices we must make when writing based on the audience for which we are writing. For all scenarios, stick to the details in the story provided but tailor your writing appropriately. Write each piece to the specific audience, analyzing before and as you write, how considering your audience and your genre varies.)
Divide students into small groups at each station so everyone starts at different places. Encourage them to collaborate in discussing genre conventions, while the instructor circulates to get involved in the discussion at each station. The overall rhetorical situation is as follows:
Earlier today you were in a car accident while driving your grandmother’s car on your way to take your Biology midterm. Luckily you were not hurt, nor were any others, but your vehicle and another have significant damage and are headed to the repair shop. Since you were texting your friend while driving instead of paying attention, you ran through a red light, so the accident was your fault. Police responded to the scene and your insurance company has been notified. Your grandmother’s car was towed away to get repaired.
Use the following scenarios for each station:
Scenario #1
You now have to write a letter to your grandmother telling her about the accident. Write this in the genre of a letter, whichever of those you would use to communicate with Grandma. Some things to consider as you write:
What content should be included for this genre? (What information and details are relevant in this letter to your grandmother?)
What is the style of the language used?
What format is it written in? How could I tell by looking at it that it is a letter?
Scenario #2
Because of the car accident, you are missing your Biology midterm. Your professor is old and ornery, and you are pretty sure he said “if you miss the midterm or final, your grade is zero - no make-ups” at the beginning of the semester. You are stressed out! By the time the police clear the accident scene, the mid-term is over and you are headed home. Write an email to your Biology professor, explaining what happened and appealing to him for another chance to take the mid-term or to make it up somehow. Write the email, considering the audience and the situation as well as the following:
What content should be included? What details are relevant? Or too much?
What style of language should you use for this email?
What else is appropriate?
Scenario #3
Write a text message to a friend – you are finished at the accident scene and need a ride. Write this in the genre of a txt msg explaining what you need, why, and from where to where. Some things to consider:
What content should be included for this genre? (What info/details are relevant in a text message?)
What is the style of the language used in a text message to a friend?
What format is it written in? How could I tell by looking at it that it is a text message?
Scenario # 4
You are now writing about the accident in the diary/journal you keep to record your thoughts every night before you go to bed. You have had a rough day, and you’re trying to make sense of things before going to sleep. Write this in the genre of a “journal entry.” Some things to keep in mind:
What content should be included for this genre? What details are relevant?
What is the style of the language used? Who is the audience?
What format is it written in? How is it obviously a journal entry?
Scenario #5
You are doing some online research about car accidents a few weeks after your accident happened because it had a big impact on you even though you were unhurt. You stumble across a blog where people share their stories about how car accidents have impacted their lives. There is an open forum for anyone who wants to post an entry to do so. You read about some horrific accidents that left people with permanent damage or loss. You are struck by the fact that your car accident, while inconvenient and a bit scary, was nothing as bad as it might have been. You decide to tell your story. Write a blog entry detailing your experience and explaining its impact on you. Some things to keep in mind:
What content would you include in this genre? Why?
What is the style of the language used? What format is it written in?
What are the conventions of a blog?
Who is the audience?
Scenario #6
You are assigned an essay for your Psychology class on the topic of human behavior and what makes people change learned habits. The assignment requires that you indicate why the topic is important to you as the writer of it. You decide to write about distracted driving, and you include your story about texting and driving as the introduction, using this personal experience to set the stage for your essay and explain your interest in the topic. It is significant for you because the accident reminds you of another time in your life when you had a close call that left you with a greater sense of appreciation for life. But you still engaged in texting while driving, so it occurs to you that you didn’t learn the lesson. Write the introduction to this Psych essay, keeping the following in mind:
What genre are you writing in and what are its conventions?
Who is the audience and what are its expectations?
What details are relevant to this introduction?
What does this part of the essay need to do? How will you achieve that goal?
Reflection on Rhetorical Situation and Genre:
Reflect on the experience of writing in different genres for each rhetorical situation. Use the following prompts as a guideline:
How did you know what was appropriate for each genre?
For each scenario, how did your audience impact what and how you chose to say?
Compare any two scenarios and discuss the significant differences in rhetorical situation (discuss purpose, audience, intended outcome, and appropriateness of writing style for each).
How does your understanding of genre, audience, and rhetorical situation influence the choices you make in writing?
What 5 elements from this exercise can you apply to a writing assignment you are currently working on in any other class? In other words, what did you learn by doing this that you can now transfer to another writing situation?