Abbey Hallowell October 13th 2013 Ms.

Germain English 1101 Genre Analysis This genre analysis will be to help the reader understand the importance of my two genres and my discourse community. My favorite part about Sundays was always getting to be able to see all my friends. We all believed the same things, acted the same way and mostly attended the same school. Sundays were a ritual in my family. I would get up, get dressed in my Sunday best and attend the place where my spiritual family would gather. As the years went on, it depleted from Sunday best to casual wear. As the times changes so did our community. Yes! My discourse community if you havent already guessed already is about my beliefs, my religion and the family, or community as you would call it, that I am apart of. The two genres that this analysis will be focusing on, one would be the first type of genre that most people are familiar with, it reaches out to the younger crowd and fulfills its purpose, my community has a Facebook page. The second is a form that this community may use that other religious groups may not, and that is a newsletter via email, this genre reaches out to the more old fashioned ages. Both of these types of genres are a means of communication, they both are informative with the purpose to encourage people to come back and check out whats happening. The Facebook page is mostly self-explanatory. The intended audiences are those who are involved in social media. It essentially is liked by the people of the church, but when a member likes it, it then connects to their facebook page for all

their friends to see. The purpose of the page is to be informative to the members and to encourage attendance at events or simply just to encourage people through out their day. A lot of church services have announcements at the beginning of their services, but through out the week the likelihood of remembering every single one of those is slim. Most people get on their facebook pages during the course of the week; this page helps remind them of the things that were discussed. The good thing about this community having a facebook page is that there is minimal time consumption. You dont have to go out of your way to find the notes that you scribbled down Sunday morning. Its just right there at the tip of your fingers for your convenience. This page can also be used for encouragement. You could be having a difficult day at work, or struggling with your finances, be on facebook and come across this So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ~Isaiah 41:10 Just this verse alone, could make you have a new outlook on your day, cheer you up and remind you that there is someone looking out for you. For this community these types of claims, information and words of wisdom are very appropriate. The good thing about facebook, is that it is very informal, it allows users to come and go as they please. This community taking a part in being involved with it not only gives and opportunity for readers to enjoy and catch up on things that they might have missed, but it also opens up the opportunity for facebook users to give a response for everyone to see, ask questions or post about things that they might have going

on and want others to attend. It is very simplistic and even the simplest of minds have the opportunity to use it. The second form of genre that I chose would be newsletters via email. Email is an older form of communication, more commonly used professionally rather than informally. This community uses it again as a form of communication and a way to inform. These newsletters are sent out weekly and are never the same. They inform people within the community about events that take place that week. For more serious instances they send out emails rather then posting it publicly on blog site or forum. An instance in which this would be used, would be requesting prayer for a serious illness, death in family or church financial needs. The newsletter is also available to those who visit the church. When you attend for the first time you can fill out a card with your information for them to keep in touch with you. This like the other genre is not time consuming and is there solely for the readers convenience. Due to the fact that this newsletter is mostly to just inform on events there is no emotion shown through it, which is why it is typically written more professionally except for rare occasion. The emails are usually done with headings and bullet points so that everything is organized and in order. Special features that the emails may contain are bright lettering or bubbly letters, purposed to draw attention to a certain area of the email. Both of these genres main purpose is to be informative and to remind. At any point if you no longer wish to receive emailed newsletters or be connected to the facebook page you can remove yourself with little frustration. They are both set up are a convenience tool for its readers/users, and are there to get you involved in the

communities activities. Even though they are both used to inform one is a professional tool and the other is an informal tool. Both are great ways to receive information due to the fact that with todays technology you can access it not only on your personal computer but also on your smart phone, tablet, Xbox or and device with internet or Wi-Fi access. Both genres are equally affected due to the fact that they reach out to different age groups. This discourse community does an excellent job of keeping their members informed and continue to grow in other ways of getting the word out there. They have utilized not only more old-fashioned technology but at the same time staying hip and in tune with the younger generation.

Here is an example of the newsletter that I copied from my email.

Dear Abundant Hope Church Family, We enjoyed a fantastic Family Meeting last night and shared some of the good things God is doing with our church family. Later this week we will send out an email with the details of the Family Meeting for those of you who missed it. For now, here's what's happening through the rest of this week at Abundant Hope Church: MEN'S GROUPS THIS WEEK we have 4 Men's Groups at Abundant Hope Church: TUESDAY EVENING @ 7:45pm - A men's fellowship group led by John Zick & Jason Thompson. Meet at the home of John Zick. WEDNESDAY MORNING @ 5:30am - A men's workout group led by Ashley Tison & Brian Sullivan. Meet at NATIONS FORD HIGH SCHOOL. WEDNESDAY MORNING @ 8:30am - A men's fellowship group led by Matt Woodhouse. Meet at the Regent Park Cafe in Fort Mill, and bring $5 for a cooked breakfast & coffee. THURSDAY EVENING @ 7:45pm - A men's study group led by Samuel Evans. Meet in the kids ministry house. WEDNESDAY 16th OCTOBER Prayer & Worship from 11am - 11pm at Abundant Hope Church.

WEDNESDAY 16th OCTOBER 7pm - ABUNDANT HOPE YOUTH MINISTRY will meet at ABUNDANT HOPE CHURCH. This will be an exciting evening as we continue to discover our ministry giftings. All youth (Grades 6-12) are invited to come along. SATURDAY 19th OCTOBER 9am - Planting and Work Day at Abundant Hope Church. Please come out with shovels and other work tools and let's help make our property SHINE :) SUNDAY 20th OCTOBER AT 11:00am April Morris will lead us as we worship together and Matt Woodhouse will share Part 3 of the series "WE HAVE FOUND WATER". SUNDAY 20th OCTOBER AT 1:00pm we will enjoy our FALL FAMILY FESTIVAL. Come celebrate this new season with the Abundant Hope Church Family. We will have: * BBQ, sides & soft drinks * LARGE Inflatable slide * Pony Rides for the kids * Corn-holes & Horse-shoe pit * 2 Bounce Houses for the kids * Cotton Candy * Balloon modeling & face painting * Kona Ice * Craft-time for the kids * Photo tent (get a free fall picture of your family & friends) * A GREAT time out for your family & friends.

GIRLS NIGHT OUT: On THURSDAY, 24th OCTOBER at 7pm, all the women at Abundant Hope Church are invited to our GIRLS NIGHT OUT TAILGATE PARTY. Come and join us, wearing your favorite football team colors. A GREAT night to connect with other ladies and HAVE FUN. More details soon. As always this email is sent with our love to you all, Matt & Darlene Woodhouse.