Genre: An Introduction to History, Theory, Research, and Pedagogy

Abstract

Anis S. Bawarshi and Mary Jo Reiff Reference Guides to Rhetoric and Composition Edited by Charles Bazerman, Anis Bawarshi, and Mary Jo Reiff Information and Pricing 978-1-60235-170-7 (paperback, $30.00); 978-1-60235-171-4 (hardcover; $60.00); 978-1-60235-172-1 (PDF, free download); also available at the WAC Clearinghouse: http://wac.colostate.edu © 2009 by Parlor Press and the WAC Clearinghouse ; 277 pages, with glossary, bibliographies, illustrations, and index. Bookstores : Order by fax, mail, or phone. See our "Sales and Ordering Page" for details. About This Book Genre: an Introduction to History, Theory, Research, and Pedagogy provides a critical overview of the rich body of scholarship that has informed a “genre turn” in Rhetoric and Composition, including a range of interdisciplinary perspectives from rhetorical theory, applied linguistics, sociology, philosophy, cognitive psychology, and literary theory.  The book presents an historical overview of genre; describes key issues and theories that have led to the reconceptualization of genre over the last thirty years; examines current research and lines of development in the study of genre; provides examples of various methodologies for conducting genre research; and explores the possibilities and implications for using genre to teach writing at various levels and within different disciplines. While the book examines various traditions that have shaped the field’s understanding of and approaches to genre, what connects these various approaches is a commitment to the idea that genres reflect and coordinate social ways of knowing and acting in the world and thus provide valuable means of researching how texts function in various contexts and teaching students how to act meaningfully in multiple contexts. About the Authors Anis Bawarshi is Associate professor of English and Director of the Expository Writing Program at the University of Washington and author of Genre and the Invention of the Wri