Genre

 

“genre is no longer a fixed set of elements”

Buckingham (1990) argues that genre is a “constant process of negotiation and change”

What are these media theorists arguing?

Genre keeps changing over time. It’s not something that’s static.

 

Post an investigation on genre (the history and how it’s changed)

 

“Genre may offer various emotional pleasures, such as empathy and escapism. We enjoy identifying with characters and imagining ourselves living out their experiences.”

What does this theory mean?

It means that genre can always relate to a particular emotion. It can relate to the connection with the problems of life.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

It relates because with the song I have chosen, the audience can really feel that their life really could be worse. But with that indie-rock tone to it, it’s an upbeat way of portraying it.

 

“To make sense of any text audiences require ‘cultural capital’ i.e. they bring their knowledge and experience of a text in order to understand it”

What does this theory mean?

It means that people learn what the genre means by experiencing it themselves.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

I could use my past experiences and put it into my music promo so I know that it is realistic.

 

‘Genre is not simply “given” by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change.’

What does this theory mean?

It means that genre is never staying the same. It’s always changing.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

Bourdieu: 'Culture Distinction: Where privileged social groups (higher classes) define their genres as superior to those of the lower classes and take pleasure in degrading the inferior media forms (trash) consuming by the masses.'

What does this mean?

Higher class people think that they can listen to different music to 'commoners'.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

The song I have picked wouldn't appeal to higher class.

Fiske: 'The assignment of a text to a genre influences how the text is read and understood. If audiences believe a text to be in a particular genre, they will interpret the text in accordance with their expectations of that game.'

What does this theory mean?

The genre is portrayed how you watch it.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

People may think different of the song I have chosen.

Richard Dyer: argued that game forms are pleasurable as they allow an audience an escape from reality.

What this theory mean?

The genre may be something the audience member can relate to.

How does this theory relate to the genre you have chosen?

The listener may be able to think the same of the narrative.

Andrew Goodwin - Thinks that videos follow the following conventions: (1) Conventions depend on the genre of the music. (2) Star persona is important and companies use close ups to sell them to the audience (3) Voyeuristic images are used to attract an audience (4) They often contain intertextual references to other media (5) There is a link between the lyrics and the visuals (6) There is a link between the visuals and the music/pace etc.