Expert In Sociology

This paper is to be minimum 3 single spaced pages. This page-count range does not include the References Cited section. It only includes the Text itself.

I. THEME

PART 1: This will form the first half of your paper.

We are used, perhaps, to thinking of "genres" in reference to literature and other artistic works (eg, types of fiction, types of nonfiction, etc). But, when we speak, we often naturally speak in terms of recognizable speech genres. We all, for instance, know that someone speaking in the speech genre of "gossip" is presenting us with information we will take in a particular way. If someone is speaking to us in the speech genre of "sermon" or "lecture", we'll likely take that information in a different way.

Genre in general is a way of packaging information. It helps us form our messages appropriately for our audiences when we are speaking. It helps us understand the messages of others appropriately when they are speaking to us. For instance, if a parent is telling a child a "bedtime story", then the parent probably intends that child to understand what is being said in a different way from, say, if that child's teacher is "scolding" the child for bad behavior.

You'll first need to choose a speech genre. "Gossip" may be too broad, for instance. There are gendered aspects to "gossip" (males tend to gossip in particular ways to other males that may often be different from the ways females gossip to other females or males gossip to females). We could consider the possibility that there are sub-genres of "gossip" that occur in offices or workplaces ("office/workplace gossip") that differ from "gossip" that takes place among friends or within families.

When we go to order a cup of coffee at a coffee shop, there is a certain set of expectations we have about the interaction. Maybe we could talk about a "restaurant purchase" speech genre here.

We could also think of a "job interview", "university classroom" (teacher-student or student-student norms of speaking), "doctor/patient interaction", etc. Although we might think of an "academic discussion forum" genre as "literary" in that it is written, it's really better to think of it here as a speech genre, as it's more like that than, say, a book or a newspaper.

The next task is to perform a SPEAKING-style analysis on your genre or sub-genre: 1. Setting/situation: Where do you normally find people using this genre/sub-genre? 2. Participants: Who is involved? Who speaks? Who listens? Who responds?
3. Ends: What are the various goals of the people involved?

4. Act sequence: What is the typical way or ways an interaction of this genre/sub-genre type unfolds?

Who speaks first? What is said or done to indicate to all concerned that they are entering into a conversation in terms of this genre/sub-genre?

5. Key: What are likely to be the various moods involved in the settings in which this genre/sub-genre typically occurs? Are the people involved "at ease" or "in conflict"? Is the genre/sub-genre one that promotes a sense of "equality" among participants or "hierarchy"?

6. Instrumentalities: What media of communication are involved? Is it all speaking? Are two or more languages used? What about formal/informal registers ("gossip" generally involves informal registers; a "classroom lecture" generally involves formal registers)? What about gestures? What about significant silences? Are there props (for example, in a "classroom lecture", you might find Powerpoint presentations and/or writing on the blackboard)?

7. Norms: What are the general "rules" involved? What are the expectations of the different participants? What happens if those expectations aren't met?

8. Genre: This is your genre or sub-genre. Describe it in clear and succinct terms, as a way of wrapping up this part of the paper.

PART 2: This will form the second half of your paper.

Pick a literary genre (or sub-genre). Keep in mind that "literary" here just means "written" (though I am also willing to consider a film genre if a student wishes to propose one). We could be talking about "fiction" and "nonfiction", but these are probably too broad. It would likely be better to choose something like "murder mysteries" (or sub-genres of it: eg, "potboilers" or "cozies"), "science fiction", "ethnography", "self-help books", "sports", "biography", "newspaper obituaries", etc. You can also pick things like "charity junk mail" or "government public information pamphlets". The idea is to find a genre or sub-genre you'd be interested in analyzing. Why not choose one you quite like?

Once you've chosen your literary genre/sub-genre, you will then want to collect three or more good examples of it—works that you feel are good representatives of that genre or sub-genre.

The next task is to perform a SPEAKING-style analysis on your genre or sub-genre. This may seem a bit odd at first, but we shall be wanting to consider the "conversation" here to be between the creators of works and the consumers of those works, just as, for instance, you would have, in the case of oral narratives, a storyteller and audience:

1. Setting/situation: What sorts of things do you think went into creating and distributing the works of the genre/sub-genre in question? How are these works of this genre/sub-genre normally consumed— under what sorts of conditions?

2. Participants: Who creates and distributes works of the genre/sub-genre in question—in general? Who consumes them? Are they consumed alone or with others present? Are all consumers the same? What are some things you could say about the relationships among the various participants?

3. Ends: What are the various goals of the creators, distributors, and consumers involved? What is each group hoping to take from the works? What sorts of messages are conveyed in the works? Are all examples of this genre/sub-genre going to convey the same messages—or different ones?

4. Act sequence: What do you imagine to be the process by which the works get from their creators' minds to their audiences'?

5. Key: What are likely to be the various moods involved in the settings involved in the creation, distribution, and consumption of the works in this genre?

6. Instrumentalities: What media of communication are involved in the process of creation, distribution, and consumption of works in your genre/sub-genre?

7. Norms: What are the general "rules" involved in the process of creation, distribution, and consumption of works in your genre/sub-genre? What are the expectations of the different participants? What happens if those expectations aren't met?

8. Genre: This is your genre or sub-genre. But here we will also be wanting to turn our focus away from the "conversation" between creators and consumers of works, and toward the works themselves: if you chose "letters to the editor" as a genre, what are the common features of those pieces of writing themselves that set them off from other genres? Do works in your chosen genre or sub-genre have elements in common with other genres? In short, what does a work have to be like in order to be considered a representative of your genre/sub-genre?

II. ORGANIZATION

First off, the entire GENRE PAPER should be in a standard 12-point font (such as Times Roman).

Section 1: The Title Page
The Title Page is one page. It goes at the front of the paper. It contains the following

information: Title of Paper (underlined), Name, Date, and Course Number. Section 2: The Text Itself

This section, following the Title Page, will contain no fewer than 1500 words and no more than 1600 words.

Of course, we are talking really about two parts. You can label each of the two parts as "Speech Genre" and "Literary Genre". And then you can break each part down thus: an Introduction lets the reader know what is to come; Body Text provides the detail and the data; and a Conclusion tells the reader where he or she has been and what the meaning of it all is.

Having trouble with your writing? Seriously, the best place to get help is the Tutoring Center: http://www.fullerton.edu/ulc/TutoringCenter.asp
Location: POLLAK LIBRARY NORTH, 2ND FLOOR

Phone: 657.278.2738

You have been advised of this!

All citations, as discussed below, must be noted in keeping with AAA Style (the AAA

Style Guide is available as a PDF from Titanium). If you have problems, you should ask at the Library, as they can help. You can also ask me, but it is best to start with the Librarians.

Section 3: References Cited
This section, following the Text Itself, will be formatted exactly according to the

guidelines noted in the AAA Style Guide (which is available as a PDF from Titanium). III. REFERENCES

The second part of paper must cite a minimum of THREE LITERARY SOURCES. Note again that, if you choose a film genre (or even a music-with-lyrics genre), these must be cited too.

CRITERIA FOR GRADING
Your grade for this assignment will be based on four main criteria. They are noted as follows:

1. Grammar and Spelling (4 points maximum out of 20): Proper grammar and spelling are essential parts of any well-written paper. The categories for assessing grammar and spelling are as follows:

Low: Serious and multiple errors in grammar and/or spelling make the paper difficult to comprehend. Little or no proof-reading is evident.

Medium: Some errors in grammar and/or spelling weaken the paper but do not make it difficult to comprehend. This paper may have been proof-read, but not with as careful an attention to detail as is possible.

High: Few or no errors in grammar and spelling allow the reader to focus more squarely upon the paper's content.

2. Citation (4 points maximum out of 20): Students are expected to cite their sources properly. The citation format for this paper is that of the American Anthropological Association. The AAA Style Guide is available in PDF form on Titanium.

Low: Proper citations are clearly missing or are not in AAA format.
Medium: AAA format is used, but there are more than two errors in the use of that format. High: AAA format is used with two or fewer errors in the use of that format.

3. Organization (4 points maximum out of 20): Students are expected to organize the paper as noted in the section on ORGANIZATION above.

Low: The paper is difficult to follow. Perhaps it has no Introduction to either part. Perhaps it is missing a Conclusion for either part. Perhaps it is rambling.

Medium: The paper has recognizable Introductions, Bodies, and Conclusions, but one or more points mentioned in either the Introduction or Conclusion (of either part) is not adequately dealt

with in its Body; or perhaps there are serious continuity problems, with ideas expressed in one part failing to link clearly to ideas expressed in the following part.

High: The paper is well organized. The Introductions lead us in nicely; the Bodies provide the evidence we need; and the Conclusions sum things up satisfactorily. Every sentence flows clearly into the next.

4. Content (8 points maximum out of 20): Students are expected to approach this writing assignment intelligently and creatively and to link it to ideas expressed in the course.

Low: There is little or no evidence the student put much thought into the project. The ideas expressed show little or no attention to the issues dealt with in class or the course readings.

Medium: There are good ideas here, but the materials are not linked well to issues dealt with in class or the course readings; or the materials are in fact linked well to issues dealt with in class or the course readings, but the ideas behind the paper itself do not suggest much thought on the student's part.

High: The student clearly thought a great deal about the project and linked it to issues dealt with in class or the course readings.