Definition, Background, and an Example of RGT

“knowledge is not organized by itself but by a complex interaction between human activity, media, genres, technology, ideologies, and institutional structures”

Andersen, 2009, p. 356^[1]

The full scope of knowledge surrounding rhetorical genre theory (RGT) could cover an entire bay of shelves in your library. This page is an attempt to pull out the most important aspects of the theory as they relate to library instruction and information literacy. If you’re interested in a broader primer, some further reading is recommended in the Suggested Readings section.

You’re already familiar with library material genres made up of form (book, CD, DVD, etc.) and classification (mystery, non-fiction, romance, etc.). In fact, you probably explicitly think about these as you use or teach search terms, faceted searching techniques, or the parts of a scholarly journal article. Although classification and form are useful, rhetorical genre theory (RGT) insists there is more to genre than these neutral component parts. Consequently, RGT examines form, classification, and the rhetorical and social situations surrounding these two factors to build a broader, social theory of genre.

A background of rgt

• RGT is a critical theory used by composition and rhetoric scholars and teachers
• It was introduced by Carolyn Miller in her 1984 article “Genre as Social Action”^[2]
• RGT scholars argue genres should be understood through the rhetorical situations in which they reside
• In addition to ever-mounting RGT scholarship, genre pedagogies have become a popular practical use of RGT; the use of these pedagogies is generally by composition instructors for the undergraduate classroom

Some Definitional aspects of rgt

• Genres are “forms of situated cognition, social action, and social reproduction” (Bawarshi & Reiff, 2010, p. 60)^[3]
• Everyone in society uses, and sometimes even develops new, genres to communicate, but not everyone in society naturally understands each societal genre
• When we use a genre, we are making a choice of what we think is an appropriate mode of communication based on the recurring situation we’re in, as constructed by our historical context and cultural norms
• Methods of communication are typified (replicated) actions that create/reinforce expectations from the audience (e.g., you know what to expect when you see a scholarly journal article)
• We are either taught or socialized into our genre knowledge, making access to any genre, at some level, exclusive

an example of rgt within a familiar discourse community

Academic librarians, as a discourse community, formally communicate with one another through genres such as conference proceedings, journal articles, white pages, magazine articles, and other similar methods. Within these genres, community-exclusive terms like ILS, IR, facet, FRBR, and Framework are also used.

A librarian embedded in the academic librarian community is aware of how an article should look in College & Research Libraries News and how its content and writing style will differ from something like an ACRL conference proceeding paper. This knowledge is created, and surrounding meaning is made, because successful implementations of these genres are shared and reproduced. Yet it is unlikely the librarian learned the nuances of communicating using these genres explicitly in their library and information science graduate program.

How does the librarian become aware of these genres? Gaining knowledge of acceptable genres within a particular community often comes from years of socialization through watching, reading, attending conferences, and being around  peers.

Navigating these systems of genre can prove difficult for those who exist outside of the librarian discourse community. Complicating these circumstances is the fact that much of this knowledge is learned outside of the formal classroom situation. RGT provides the language necessary to have conversations about genre and discourse communities explicitly, leading to a greater chance for the novice to gain awareness and one day even be able to critique and even change their situation for their benefit.

Questions raised by rgt

Why might a particular genre of communication be chosen over another in any particular situation?

How does the acceptance of certain genres within a community welcome or rebuff those who want to join the discourse?

How does someone become comfortable with a genre?

Can genres be taught and learned?