Blog #2: Devitt's Genres

Welcome back folks!

The last time I posted was about a week ago (week ago). Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to read a little something something from a woman by the name of Amy Devitt. Her article/book excerpt/whatever you want to call it, argues the idea that educators should spend time teaching the background and contexts of genres. The so-called “genres” Devitt mentions are those specific to writing, discussions, and ideas that reserve a certain amount of individuality when they are backed by critical thinking.

Most of the genres I encounter in my life appear to include some type of literary analysis. In an academic setting like SDSU, this is expected. However, at my job . . . just kidding I don’t have one. There’s no time when you’re an Aztec for Life amirite? While I don’t do much analytical writing at my internship, there is a genre that involves short-handed notes and symbols to abbreviate lengthy words. Another very significant genre in my life and probably all of yours is texting. I’m not quite sure if that can be considered a genre, but I don’t see why not.

 

The presence of different genres makes so much sense. You just witnessed an A-HA! moment.

Each genre is unique to the purpose it’s meant to serve. Por ejemplo, majority of the writing in my classes at State requires me to provide some evidence perfectly sandwiched between quotation marks. These quotes come from things that talk about the thing I’m talking about. As tedious as this writing is, I always find that I sound much smarter on paper than when I open my mouth. At my internship (I intern at a physical therapy clinic), everything the patient says and does must be recorded in a way that allows the physical therapist to track progress without having to read a novel each time. can u evn remember wat it was like b4 txtng? I can, but that’s beside the point. The gibberish and absence of grammar used in text messaging condenses sentences to a bare minimum for us to understand. I know a lot of people whose pet peeve is when people don’t text in full sentences. I get it. People are practicing to write incorrectly. It honestly doesn’t bother me as long as I know what you’re trying to say. I’m not your English teacher or your daddy, so there’s really no reason for me to tell you how to write your texts.

While Devitt mentions that some people see genres as an obstruction to one’s creativity, she counters with how they can be used as tools when a student decides to become engaged learners/thinkers. According to Devitt, “Whether we use genres consciously in the classroom or not, the genres we assign promote particular worldviews just as the topics we have them [students] read about do” (page 339). As a student, I understand the fear teachers have when working on a genre. The genre’s label automatically brings with it, a specific set of rules and boundaries that deem what is and isn’t acceptable. Often, teachers can only measure students’ understanding through a clearly organized style of writing. The downside to this goes back to the loss of authenticity from the student. They become caught up in following a format that fails to explain the reason it must be written in that way. A few times in the text, she brings up the oh so familiar five-paragraph essay format. It’s crazy to think that we are constantly bombarded with thoughts and concepts that come from people and places unknown to us.

My girl Amy Devitt

While Devitt says that it’s important to teach about the context of genres, she also states the problem that arises in attempting to teach a genre in order for students to completely to understand it. Like everything in life, it’s much more complex than we realize because, “If we teach a genre explicitly, we will inevitably teach it incompletely, but students will understand more about it than they would have if we had taught them nothing about it at all” (page 341). There seems to be no winning here. Teachers should teach genres, but there’s no way to teach all aspects of a genre. This being the case, I agree that having a little knowledge on something is better than not having any at all.

Personally, I don’t think any subject can be covered completely. You gain bits and pieces of information as you come across that subject at different times and places in your own life. That’s where your own individuality and opinions are truly formed. Genres have a greater impact on our lives than we think. It’s up to us to decide how much influence we want to grant it.