Exam (elaborations)
Exam (elaborations) ENG3702 - The English Language: Context and Purpose
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SECTION AIn this essay, I will define the terms of genre and discourse with reference to academic sources such
as the ‘Cambridge International Dictionary’, and the definitions from works of V.K Bhatia and Andrew
Goatly, with the purpose of identifying the similarities and differences between the terms, genre and
discourse. Lastly, I will explain my understanding of the terms in context to the module, ENG3702:
“English Language; Context Purpose”.
The ‘Cambridge International Dictionary of English’ (1995) briefly describes ‘genre’ and ‘discourse’ as
being the following;
Discourse: “Communication in speech or writing”
Genre: “A style, especially in the arts, that involves a particular set of characteristics”.
Although it is useful to identify these terms in their separate forms in order to generate a clear
understanding, V.K Bhatia (2008) explanation of genre further illustrates the interconnection between
genre and discourse. Bhatia defines genre as being; a recognisable communicative event,
characterised by a set of communicative purposes, which is identified and understood by members of
the academic community in which it occurs. What is understood by Bhatia’s explanation is that
discourse can be identified as the ‘communicative event’ (exchange of information), which is
comprised of a group sentences which link to another and thus characterise a ‘communicative
purpose’. The function of discourse is that in its purpose it creates a generic structure, which is
understood by members of a community/discipline. ‘Discipline’ can be understood as a professional
or academic field in which members of the community share an understanding of the particular
grammar and lexis structure of a text. I.e. Members of the discipline of medicine would be able to
interpret and generate lexical and grammatical information (discourse) on a formal medical report
(generic structure of the text).
Thus, discourse is comprised of the communicative components which both occur within a genre and
create the generic structure of a text. Genre can be conceived as being the mapped outline/ format
of the discourse, which can be identified depending on its purpose, such as; research articles,
textbooks or academic essays. It is also notable that genres can also overlap/occur within different
disciplines, i.e. ‘research articles’ can be found in the disciplines of Business, Law and Science -
although the discourse will be different, the generic format of the texts will mostly the same. Goatly
& Hiradhar (2016: 22) further comment on the interconnected function of discourse and genre;
“When we consider specific discourse types or genres, we will recognise a more or less
conventionalised generic structure, a kind of template into which we can fit our words and sentences”.
Thus, genre is the template/format which is created through the purpose of the
discourse/communicative event.
Through my study of the module ENG3702, I have come to understand genre and discourse not as
separate terms but as the collective term of discourse-genre, which is an integral part of culture and
is characterised by language features which creates a purpose within its social and cultural context. I
have also come to recognise how constraints within genres are sometimes misused by the expert
members of the discourse community to achieve private intentions within its socially recognised
purpose; a member of a discipline can use expertise to an advantage i.e. how a legal document
presented to an addressee can manipulate or deceive the receiver who might not be familiar with
legal terms and formats. Consequently, genre is a useful lens to use in the analysis of texts, as it shows
how discourses are socially motivated, generated and constrained.
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