Textual Investigation 1

For genre, candidates study:

 generic features, conventions and iconography
 principles of repetition and variation of a repertoire of elements
 hybridity
 intertextuality
 genres – relationship between organisational and audience/user needs

Textual Investigation 1 must be based on:
Genre
 one main text but referring to examples of other texts
 one of three forms (print, audio-visual or interactive media).

For Textual Investigation 1, candidates may select which text is 

focused on but must choose one of the following titles: 

 Investigate how genre conventions are used in [chosen text] 

 Investigate how far genre conventions are challenged in [chosen text] 

 Investigate how far [chosen text] conforms to genre 

conventions. 

The following texts can be studied for either investigation: 

 Print: extracts/front pages/cover pages from comics, posters, 

newspapers, magazines or advertisements.

Textual Investigation 1

The title of your first Textual Investigation is:

Investigate how genre conventions are used in [ name of your text].

The subject of your text should be print based and chosen from one of the following formats:

Extracts/front pages/cover pages from comics, 
Promotional posters for films, games, music events.
newspapers, magazines.

You need to compare your main text with two other relevant texts.

The word count required is between 480 and 850, not including illustrations.

Consider visual codes: Costume, facial expression, colour symbolism, body language, graphics.
Consider technical codes: Sound, lighting, framing within the shot.

How has the text tried to attract a specific target audience?

You can use this outline as a structural starting point:

Intro:

Explain what genre conventions are, give illustrated examples.

Definition of GENRE: 
A way of categorising a particular media text according to its content and style.

READ THIS LINK ON GENRE

Write about how the codes and conventions allow a target audience to expect certain elements when they choose a particular text.

Genre Conventions:
Give a pattern for construction, a template
Genre pieces have an established audience who are easy to market to
Certain personnel can develop their skills working within a particular genre (e.g. horror make up specialists)
Stars can associate themselves with a particular genre e.g. Will Ferrell is known for a certain type of slapstick comedy, and his face on a poster instantly tells audiences what kind of movie they are likely to see if he is in it.
Fans of a genre know the codes, so you don't have to reinvent the wheel all the time

Certain conventions are present on numerous occasions within different texts of the same genre.
This is how texts are categorised.

Genres are formed by conventions that change over time as new genres are invented and the use of old ones are discontinued. Often, works fit into multiple genres by way of borrowing and recombining these conventions.

What text are you investigating?

What genre category does this fall into?

What do audiences expect of this genre from looking at the iconography?

What are the texts will you use to compare your main subject to? You need two texts in the same format.

Main body:
Define the word stereotypes.

Describe the main characters [in your text]

How do the visual codes [costume, colour, body language] tell the audience that the characters conform or challenge stereotypes within that genre?

Write about gender representation.

Write about the visual codes [body language, facial expression] that back up your ideas about the characters.

Use illustrations to support your point. [Vulnerable females, dominant male types].

Compare the characters in your text to the characters in comparable texts.

Write about the target audience for your text. [ Categories; A,B, C1….mainstreamers, succeeders]. 
How has the text tried to attract it's target audience? 
How do these methods of attracting an audience compare with you

Although genres are not always precisely definable, genre considerations are one of the most important factors in determining what a person will see or read. The classification properties of genre can attract or repel potential users depending on the individual's understanding of a genre.

Genre creates an expectation in that expectation is met or not. Many genres have built-in audiences and corresponding publications that support them, such as magazines and websites. Inversely, audiences may call out for change and create an entirely new genre

Write about the setting of your text if appropriate.

Compare to settings of other texts.

How does the target audience relate to this setting? Do they feel comfortable or not?

Conclusion:

How have the different elements that you have identified been used in the text? 
Have they conformed to or challenged the genre conventions for the target audience?
Is the text you have investigated successful, does it do it's job?

Include a word count.
Include a bibliography.