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ContextAmpGenreAnalysis

The Context-Genre Analysis Project:

Deliverables

In the end the project has three real deliverables:

• Proposal arguing that X context would be a good choice for the project
• A paper in the form of a technical article
• A presentation given to the rest of the class about your project

Parts of the Paper

Connecting Concepts:

When you add terms or connections "sign" them like so (Steve B). Here are a few examples to get us started.

Writing is "social practice" (Steve B.)

• First briefly explain concept and/or how it counters "common sense", then briefly explain how this shows up in your context. This homework is another sort of invention heuristic to try to generate lots of possible claims for the reports. And realize a given example of writing could work for multiple concepts. Just to pick one to share here (I mentioned this one in class), a student wrote about a genre in a particular FYE store--a kind of individual sales tally that was posted on the break room wall for all salespeople--and the fact that writing is social practice cut both ways. The managers expected this public display to encourage competition, but the social relations between the workers were strong enough (or rewards small enough) that high sales tallies actually caused those workers to be ostracized--a teeny sort of social rebellion against "the man." (Steve B)

Note that this particular example of writing practice, this genre, and or the process involved, could be used to illustrate several other aspects of writing and tech comm--our concepts from the reading can apply to writing practices in many, many different ways. Inventio, indeed. And people can share connections to concepts others first put up. Just be sure to make your own bullet point, and each person is required to add to the concept list.'

Invention (inventio)

• First briefly explain concept and/or how it counters "common sense", then briefly explain how this shows up in your context. This homework is another sort of invention heuristic to try to generate lots of possible claims for the reports.

Discourse community: (Rebecca H)

• relates to my context because within my Mixed Media class there were creative writing students and art students. The art students understood terminology that focused on techniques, materials, and well known visual artists. The creative writing students understood terminology that is involved with poetry and prose as well as references to well known authors and poets.

Evidence: (Rebecca H)

• relates to my context because in our process papers for our projects we had to explain and describe our creative processes and what the meaning our work was meant to convey. In the paper the students needed to make claims about their project and hopefully the project was the evidence that backed up these claims. A claim in a process paper could be that a student chose to write their text in blue to convey a sense of sadness.

Writing Context: (Eric C.)

• According to Linda Driskill (who takes a few cues from Faigley), she sees context in this light as something that "can help explain what a document means, what ideas it contains, why the writer would try to express his or her ideas in a particular way, and why readers who occupy particular roles in different parts of an organization would likely to respond to a document in particular ways."
• Of interest to me and my analysis of a context genre is my former workplace at Lowe's that contained numerous discourse communities within the staff of the store itself. A piece of written or electronic text, as in the case of special order invoices, is a prime example of the above factors that contribute to our understanding of what it means and what is trying to be conveyed through this process. However, a writing context also helps to aide our thinking in identifying why a certain writing process inside the store affects workers differently when they are encountered with some relatable aspects of the original text.

Expediency: (Eric C.)

• The use of short term or effective methods that bring the most immediate benefit. Practicality favored over morality.
• This concept was the basis of Katz's article on the Ethics of Expediency. Companies, corporations, and large scale organizations seem to be accused of this frequently and while working at Lowe's, I don't believe applying this concept to the context is that far removed from the truth. So much of the understanding in Lowe's is based on speed and immediate resolution of problems or concerns. Even the every day operation of the store (including such broad tasks as emptying the merchandise truck, putting freight away, or writing up special orders) was not designed or encouraged to take morality or democracy into account. The expedient system in place is meant to produce results but it fails to realize the human factors involved in the operation. Because some work regulated to workers is based on a heiarchial structure of command, some processes could be argued to be unfairly proportioned. While the company sees such a structure as being significant and effective, at the same time it is not created with equality nor humanity in mind.

Context of use/Context of Production: (Eric to the S.)

• Definition: COU regards the people who are using whatever it is you’ve created, while COP is the creator (you) of whatever it is the COUs are using.
• The idea here is that one should write with the user in mind, and make it accessible and easy to understand. Basically it’s writing with your audience in mind. With my workplace, the COUs are the Pages, and the COPs are the bosses that lay down the rules. The way it works in my context, is that it doesn’t work. The ones in charge rarely have the Pages in mind or (just for kicks, I dunno) don’t tell the Pages at all.

Talking Heads (Brian B.)

Talking heads are title phrases to different sections in a document that allow more efficient reading for all intended parties. In memos intended for multiple people at a workplace, talking heads allow people to skip to the sections that they think would apply to them. Good talking heads accurately and briefly describe the content that follows it.

Dialect (Brian B.)

Dialect, or the way we speak and write involves personal and group definition through various functions of language such as figures of speech. Dialect is another function of discourse communities that serves to reinforce a sense of familiarity between members.

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Ethics: (Mark T.)

• The moral implications of communication; the choice one must make as a writer when confronted with decisions that must be given "right" or "wrong" qualifications.
• In my context at the hotel, we are allowed to use our best judgment when choosing a room rate to give a particular customer for a particular night. When doing so, the clerks has to decide what room rate to write onto the reservation card and to put into the computer. Ethically, this should be identical to the rate quoted to and collected from the customer. However, individual clerks could reap a financial benefit from quoting the customer a higher price than they write down on the card and put into the computer. This ethical dilemma basically comes down to "to steal or not to steal," but is an example of a true ethical communication choice nonetheless.

Genres: (Mark T.)

• A genre in writing attempts to categorize documents of similar layout, style, and purpose and in doing so dictate the purpose and content of future documents within that genre.
• In my context at the hotel, one document that all clerks and managers use everyday, the yellow sheet, is ambiguous when it comes to genres, and ends up playing a number of roles and fulfills a number of purposes. The sheet lists all guests currently at the hotel in pen and those arriving today in pencil (these will be erased and re-written in pen when the guests arrive.) The sheet also has a section for all of the day's financial transactions (both positive and negative) to be recorded. Each employee uses this to double-check computer and credit card records, but managers and the owner also use it to double check the work of the clerks. This document is not quite a transaction report or balance sheet, and it's not quite an in-room guest sheet; it's a combination of the important data that must be available and constantly recorded on the hotel's desk during hours of operation. This document has obviously been improved many times to best facilitate hotel function, and in no way falls into any category or genre, which would narrow the purpose and effectiveness of the document.

KNOWLEDGE: (Rachel C.)

• Regli tells us that "knowledge" is a verb, not a noun. You may be able to gain information, and therefore feel you "know" something, but if you are unable to put that information into practice, you have no true "knowledge" of it.
• In my context, I think this comes into play often. At the car wash we have many different situations we have to be prepared be - anything from equipment malfunction to an angry customer to a robbery. While procedures for such things are covered either in the employee handbook, or through watching the manager fix a piece of equipment or deal with a customer, until you are actually IN that situation, you don't really know what you think you know. If you have watched the chain be fixed 10 times, but when it breaks on you and you're left to fix it and can't remember what to do, in Regli's definition of the term, you don't have "knowledge" of how to perform this task.

AUDIENCE: (Rachel C.)

• When you write, your audience is really never only the person you are writing directly to. You have to take into account anybody that may end up reading what you have written, and how they may relate/not relate to the content, and how they may interpret what you have to say. You can't always plan for absolutly everybody that may come in contact with your writing, but you can work to make your writing function well for those you can think of.
• This relates to my context in that there is really no piece of writing that is only read by the writer and receipient. One example is write ups for the employees, when they do something wrong. While the manager may want to write things a certain way that he and the employee will understand, it needs to be written so the supervisors can understand what's going on and not be left with any questions.

Claims: (Vicki L.)

• A claim is something that the person says they can do, they know, or they have the right opinion of. It works with supports and warrents. It must have the latter two in order to be credible.
• During the summer the kids and the staff would walk to the ice cream shop twice a month. At my daycare children often claimed that they could go on the ice cream walk and get ice cream when in fact some of them had not turned in the permission slips and/or not brought any money for the ice cream. Some of them just forgot they weren't able to go and others were trying to trick us into getting them free ice cream. The claims were only valid if we had their permission slip in our binder signed and had marked them off in the ice cream money log as paid. These two items were the supports of their claim that they could go and having them warrented them to be clear to participate and not have to stay behind with other staff.

Rhetorical Situation (Vicki L)

• A rhetorical situation takes into account the context of the situation and the people involved and how they relate to each other and that contxt.
• The writing of notes to parents in regards to a child who has misbehaved at the daycare has to consider the rhetorical context of the parent/child, parent/teacher, child/teacher, teacher/boss relationships as well as the overall feeling of the daycare and not painting a bad picture of it. If the note to the parent is written when angry at the child for instance that might come through in the note and the parents would get upset about that and think poorly of the teacher and therefore the daycare too. This would not be good for the teacher because if the parent complained to the boss then that teacher could get into trouble. Another thing to take into consideration is that most parents think their child is an angel and would never hurt another child or do anything against the rules so they will try to blame other people like the teacher or the other child involved. So in the note a teacher writes they have to make their point about the child doing wrong firmly but also delicately so the parent doesn't get defensive. Usually when a parent gets a note like this they will want to talk to the teacher the next time they see him or her or right then if they read it right away.

Purpose (Mike B)

• For any document there has to be a purpose, something the document is trying to accomplish. In my scenario the primary document is the computer survey. The purpose of the document is to map the clients property with as much accuracy as possible. The purpose of the survey is very straightforward and simple, yet takes a number of people with different expertise to accomplish.