In his essay, “Navigating Genres,” Kerry Dirk explains both the common idea of genre as well as his own understanding. He notes that genre has been seen as a kind of formula, meaning that all a writer must do is plug in the missing pieces. Dirk contradicts this idea by explaining that genre is more accurately a common or repeated response by many to an original or similar prompt. However, genre may also be used in order to produce a desired response. With this in mind, Dirk recognizes that people participate in genres everyday, many times without even realizing they are doing it. Genre can also be seen as a way to communicate because it is often familiar and formulaic, depending on the situation, such as a formal business meeting (making and approving motions, etc.). Dirk reminds his readers that it is also important to remember that multiple things that fit into the same genre can still be very different, depending on the location, and that those studying genre must learn to look for the similarities while recognizing the necessary differences. Genres can be complicated because they can be somewhat formulaic in nature, so writers, or participators in general, must walk the fine line of too much and too little freedom so as to stay out of the gray area. Finally, Dirk recognizes for his reader that it is important to understand many genres rather than becoming an expert in one.

I found it really interesting that Dirk thinks of genre as anything from fiction to telling jokes. Typically, I think of genre as fiction, non-fiction, science-fiction, etc., so Dirk’s expansion on genre as more than just a type of novel or film was eye-opening to me. Of course, in high school we always had the typical five paragraph essays: introductory paragraph, thesis statement, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Often, I felt a lack of freedom to express my own creativity, simply because it become so formulaic and routine. I’ve found that writing can or cannot be enjoyable based on the stipulations on an assignment. With that said, some kind of form or path is helpful, at least to get started.