Genre studies categorize stories to make it easier to compare and differentiate between them. Gender studies provide a larger context to recognize common themes and ideas in certain types of stories. Once genres are established, other literary concepts can be used to identify common character types. Understanding gender studies can enhance a reader’s or viewer’s experience of a story by providing a stronger background for the story itself.
Genre studies typically refer to the processes by which someone approaches the study of literature, film, or other storytelling medium through the categorization of story types. This means that stories are often categorized according to a set of established genres to make it easier or more accurate to compare and differentiate between these stories. Still other methods can be used to analyze various aspects of a story, such as considerations of characterization and story structure. Gender studies simply provide a larger context in which these other considerations can be used, allowing someone to more easily create a “shorthand” method for recognizing certain themes and ideas common to certain types of stories.
The basic approach to gender studies typically begins with considerations of different types of stories, to find common themes and ideas in those stories that allow them to be categorized most effectively. These categories are referred to as “genres” and typically indicate that stories within a particular genre have certain themes, images, and other details in common. There are many different types of genres used in genre studies, such as fiction, nonfiction, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and westerns. Within these basic genres, there are also sub-genres, such as futuristic science fiction, historical science fiction, and cyberpunk science fiction.
Once these genres have been established for use in gender studies, other literary studies concepts can be used. Within a particular genre, certain character types may be common, and characterization may be easier for a story once the genre is established. In science fiction, for example, common character types may include space soldiers, “starfighter” pilots, and computer hackers. Using concepts within Genre Studies, someone can identify that a story belongs to a particular genre and then use that information to more easily sort characters within a story into several common archetypes for that genre.
A general understanding of gender studies can also greatly enhance a reader’s or viewer’s experience of a particular story, as it provides the audience with a stronger background for the story itself. Many times, storytellers may use common genre archetypes, themes, or conventions to facilitate the overall process of storytelling. Someone familiar with gender studies, for example, might understand that within fantasy storytelling the convention of an old wizard or wizard is quite common. This may then allow that person to have a better understanding of a story where this convention is used in an unusual way, such as having the wizard young rather than old, or where the convention is reinforced as a form of narrative shorthand.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
