Erica Bruckner

Zack De Piero
April 15, 2015
Writing Project #1
It is human nature to be drawn to to what is familiar to uswhether it be another person, a
place, or an idea. Familiarity makes us feel safe and in control of our surroundings because we
find comfort in knowing what to expect without the likelihood of any surprises. In the context of
writing, this tendency to gravitate towards the familiar manifests itself in the form of genres.
Genresand the conventions they followgive the reader a sense of knowing what they are
about to read is all about and gives them some peace of mind in the fact that they have a general idea of what to expect. Genres allow a reader to not only classify [what they read] and expect a certain form, but also make assumptions about the texts purposes, its subject matter, its
writer, and its expected reader (Dirk). In order to deepen my understanding of genre, I analyzed
three texts that fall under the genre of a listicle, an article on the Internet presented in the
form of a numbered or bullet-pointed list (Listicle). These listicles (20 Qualities The Person
Youre Going To Marry Should Have, 25 Qualities of The Person You Should Marry, and 7
Essential Qualities to Look for in Your Future Husband) all focused on he topic of traits one
should look for in a life partner. After analyzing this genre of writing, it became apparent that
genres are comprised of certain conventions and use similar rhetorical devices, which make a
genre what it is.
Firstly, the most glaringly obvious similarity I found across all of the listicles was the format of the text. In each of the listicles I examined about the qualities one should look for in a

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partner, the information came in the form of a numbered list of qualities. The subject of the particular item on the list directly followed the number and ranged from just one word to a short
sentence. Underneath each number and quality, there was text that further elaborated on the subject being discussed by explaining things like why it was important or providing some other form
of commentary. The number and quality being discussed in that portion of the list were in bigger, bolder text than the text that elaborated on it underneath. However, the commentary underneath each number and subject did not always come in the form of text and sometimes manifested itself in the form of a picture or animated gif that was related to the subject. This difference in
the formatting to listicles is due to the fact that the image or gif essentially serves the same purpose as the textual commentaryto make an observation about the subject or to provide more
information.
Furthermore, the format of the listicles titles typically followed some conventions. As we
can see from the titles 20 Qualities The Person Youre Going To Marry Should Have, 25
Qualities of The Person You Should Marry, and 7 Essential Qualities to Look for in Your Future Husband, the titles of listicles customarily begin with the number of items that are going to
be on the list. The titles start off this way to both let the reader know that the article will be in a
list format and to give an idea of how long the list will be. The titles of listicles also are customarily larger and in a different font or style then the rest of the text in order to make it the first
thing the readers eye is drawn to.
The purpose of a listicle is to present information in a fashion that is easily read. The listicles I examined about the qualities one should look for in a partner numbered each quality and
had the commentary placed directly underneath each quality, making each point the author was

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trying to make very easily spotted on the page. This format allowed the information to be more
easily read because the information was broken up into segments for the reader and given to
them in smaller, more understandable chunks instead of presented in lengthy paragraphs that
may be hard to follow. The format of listicles allow each of the authors points to be clearly defined and more easily understood.
The audience of a listicle is typically someone who is looking for relatively light-hearted
reading material. Listicles are most popular on pop-culture media websites like BuzzFeed and
EliteDailyrather than more serious news outlets like the Huffington Post or the New York
Timesbecause they are meant to get information across easily. The serious news websites
typically cover more complex issues and therefore cannot use a listicle to convey the information. The readers of pop-culture media websites are typically visiting these said websites instead
of the more serious ones because they are looking for relatively light-hearted media. For this reason, listicles tend to be catered to an audience who is not interested in reading depressing,
somber news and instead are looking to read more uplifting and humorous articles.
The tone of listicles is primarily casual, however, they also customarily takes on an authoritative voice as well . In 20 Qualities The Person Youre Going To Marry Should Have, 25
Qualities of The Person You Should Marry, and 7 Essential Qualities to Look for in Your Future Husband, the listicles read as if the author was addressing the reader like they were giving
advice to a friend that they felt more knowledgable than. For example, in 7 Essential Qualities
to Look for in Your Future Husband, the author writes, one of the most obvious qualities to
look for in your future husband is commitment. No, Im not just talking about in your relationship either. Is he committed to honesty, to his relationships with friends and family, to his job,

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and to his word? (Argintar). The fact that the author uses the words no, I'm not just talking
about contributes to the casual tone because this excerpt sounds like the authors stream of
consciousnessas if she were casually talking with a friendand does not sound as if she were
talking with, for example, a professor or boss. The tone of the excerpt is also authoritarian at the
same time because the author assumes to know more than the reader when she implies that the
reader would assume that commitment" would only mean commitment to the relationship. Listicles casual tones are in some part due to the fact that readers of listicles are usually just casually exploring the internet, searching for funny or interesting articles, and would rather read things
that are relatively casual than formal. The tone of listicles also customarily takes on an authoritative tone because the author must sound believable and relatively knowledgable in order for the
reader to buy into what they are saying and continue reading.
In analyzing the three listicles, I deepened my understanding of genre because I took the
time to identify the conventions and rhetorical devices used that made the listicles what they
were. I believe that learning about the concept of genre is important because it allows you to become both a better writer and reader. By identifying the subtle nuances between different forms
of writing, one is able to write effectively because they know both the general format they should
follow and the rhetorical devices they should use. Having a knowledge of genreand the conventions they are made up ofalso improve a readers abilities because they have an idea of
what to expect and can more easily infer the authors purpose for writing. Having a thorough understanding of genre can make one a more effective writer because it allows an author to write
appropriately for a given situation, one that is determined by the expectations of your audience,
implied or acknowledged (Boyd). Through exploring the characteristics that make different

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writing genres unique, I believe that I improved my writing because, going forward, I will now
take into account the different rhetorical devices and conventions I should consider when writing
different genres of text. Analyzing the features of a genre made me realize that I should take the
time to identify the conventions and rhetorical devices of the genre Im writing under in order to
make sure that I am writing to the best of my ability. Genre is important to everyone who reads
or writesin any capacitybecause it dictates what is an acceptable and unacceptable manner
in which to express ones ideas and makes text more familiar. Without a fundamental, basic understanding of genre, one would have no idea how to get across information in an appropriate
manner.

Argintar, Laura. "20 Qualities The Person Youre Going To Marry Should Have."
EliteDaily.com. 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://elitedaily.com/women/20qualities-the-person-youre-going-to-marry-should-have/>.
Boyd, Janet. "Murder! (Rhetorically Speaking)." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. Vol. 2.
2011.
Dirk, Kerry. "Navigating Genres." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. Vol. 1.
Listicle. OxfordDictionaries.com. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/
american_english/listicle (12 April 2015).
Wallen, Daniel. "25 Qualities of The Person You Should Marry." LifeHack.org. Web. 12 Apr.
2015. <http://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/25-qualities-the-person-youshould-marry.html>.

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Williams, Heather. "7 Essential Qualities to Look for in Your Future Husband."
AllWomenStalk.com. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://love.allwomenstalk.com/essentialqualities-to-look-for-in-your-future-husband>.

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