Huynh

Deanna Huynh
Writing 2
Zack De Piero
20 Jan 2016
A Consumers Genre
Genres are everywhere: restaurant menus, text messages, news articles, etc. One textual
genre that is highly present in daily life, but also highly neglected and underappreciated is
instruction manuals. Most of the time when people purchase or receive a new product a users
manual comes with it, but hardly ever does anyone take the time to really read through the
manual and absorb the information that it provides. Most consumers dont realize how important
these manuals are and how vital the information provided in the manuals is for consumer safety.
Although most would rarely recognize them as such, instruction manuals are of their own genre
and have conventions and rhetorical features that make them unique to other textual genres.
Kerry Dirk, author of Navigating Genres, writes that Learning about genres and how they
function is more important than mastering one particular genre; it is this knowledge that helps us
to recognize and to determine appropriate responses to different situations (Dirk 259). Some
instruction manuals, such as those for a digital camera, a dishwasher, and a car stereo system,
have these conventions and rhetorical features that make them distinct to their textual genre, and
understanding the conventions and rhetorical features of the genre allow readers to better
understand the content.
Rhetorical features are characteristics of text tone, purpose, audience, style that allow
authors to express their points effectively and dramatically. In Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps
toward Rhetorical Analysis, author Laura Bolin Carroll writes of different steps and features of

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rhetorical analysis. One such rhetorical feature is audience, those who are the (intended or

unintended) recipients of the rhetorical message (Carroll 49). The audience is the recipient of
the text and should have some form of response to the text. For instruction manuals in particular,
the audience is the product consumer and the response that the message that the writer wants the
audience to receive is the instructions along with the warnings and cautions and all of the other
important information that is provided in the manual. Textual genres are almost always written
with the audience in mind as the audience usually determines the way that the text is written and
the type of language that is used within the text. Carroll also writes Rhetoric [is] the way we use
language and images to persuade (Carroll 49), and although instruction manuals arent written
or meant to be persuasive in any particular manner, they do use images and language to persuade
their product consumers to use the product in a certain way; one that promotes safety and the
proper usage of the product.
Some specific components of rhetoric are affordances and constraints. Affordances allow
you to do certain things and include certain components or aspects that that other genres would
not, and constraints limit the way that the discourse is delivered or communicated (Carroll 49).
Some affordances of instruction manuals are that they can include images and bulleted or
numbered lists that could be considered too informal for other genres, but are appropriate and
helpful for this genre. Bulleted lists provide information in a simple and concrete way that
prevents the writer from including unnecessary text and information, numbered lists provided
step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow as it is important that the consumer sets up and
operates the system in a particular way as to avoid and prevent misuse of the device, and
illustrations of the product with labeled parts provides a visual model that aides the consumer in
the usage of the item and prevent confusion is the user does not know what certain parts of the

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product are called. These affordances are extremely important in instruction manuals because

they are vital in aiding consumers in the use of the products. For example, looking at the
dishwasher user manual, most consumers would most likely not know what the RS-232 serial
port looks like or where it is located or on a car stereo, what button to press to activate the pitch
slider, but would be able to easily locate those parts of the products with the aide of the labeled
illustrations.
Although there are many affordances of instruction manuals, there are also several
constraints that often directly correlate to the affordances. Constraints are simply limiting factors,
and can be beliefs, attitudes, documents, facts, traditions, images, interests, motives (Carroll
49). One constraint that correlates to the bulleted and numbered lists is that the text and content
usually have to be concise and to the point. Manual writers cannot have much of an opinion nor
can they use a fun or playful tone throughout the text as these manuals are meant to be
informational and instructional. A constraint related to the affordances of images is that the
image must be of the product or of something related to the product or the consumers usage of
the product. The writer of the manual cannot include any kind of image that he or she pleases,
but must only include images that would be useful in aiding the consumer in the usage of the
product. One last constraint is the content of the manual. All instruction manuals have to have
certain components warning, cautions, setup and usage instructions, etc that must be present
as they ensure the safety of the consumer.
Two major conventions of instruction manuals are the warnings and cautions, which not
only prevent the user from using the product in a dangerous and potentially fatal manner, but also
serve as liability prevention for the manufacturer. Of the three manuals that were studied, each
contained at least one warning or caution that signified danger associated with the misuse of the

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product. In the car stereo manual, a warning read, To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not

expose this CD player to water or moisture (American Audio 22), in the dishwasher manual one
read To reduce the risk of fire, electrical shock, or injury when using your dishwasher, follow
basic precautions including (Whirlpool 34), and in the digital camera manual, a caution read
Risk of electric shock; do not open (Sony Corporation 5). This correlates to both the So
what? part of writing that is addressed in So What? Who Cares? Saying Why It Matters where
the author explains that when you step back from the text and explain why it matters, you are
urging your audience to keep reading and pay attention, and care. The author also writes that the
who cares? asks you to identify an interested person or group and so what asks you to link
your argument to some larger matter that readers already deem important (So What? Who
Cares? 97). In this situation the who-cares refers to the consumers and the so-what is addressed
when the writer warns the consumer of dangers associated with the misuse of the product. The
warnings that are written in the manuals alert the user of the possibility of injuries, severe
reactions and death associated with the mishandling of the product and cautions alert the users of
any possible problems or malfunctions that would arise with the misuse of the device. When
authors of instruction manuals link the risk of product misuse with dangers that could be
potentially fatal, the consumers become more attentive because the text is now immediately
relevant to themselves and to their well being.
Genres arise when different pieces of work have similar conventions and rhetorical
features. Instruction manuals are a prime example of a textual genre because they are structured
and written in a distinct way to other types of genres. The manuals are structured in a way that is
meant to be simple and easily understood by consumers. Although it is not immediately obvious,
instruction manuals are persuasive and do elicit a certain response from their readers. They

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persuade readers and consumers to use the product in a particular way as to not damage the

product, themselves, or others. When people understand the convention and rhetorical features of
genres, they come to a better understanding of what purpose each textual genre and its
components serve. With instruction manuals in particular, if more people, especially the
consumers, had a better understanding of this textual genre, they would better understand the
purpose of instruction manuals and realize how important is that they not take the manuals for
granted, but rather read them through to ensure their safety and the safety of others around them.

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Works Cited
American Audio. (2007). American Audio 1000 Car Stereo System User Manual. Retrieved
from http://caraudio.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/american_audio/1000.html?p=41.
Carroll, Laura Bolin. Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis. Writing
Spaces, 2010. Print.
Dirk, Kerry. Writing Spaces: Navigating Genres (249-262). Parlor Press, 2010. Print.
So What? Who Cares? Saying Why It Matters. Writing Spaces, 2010. Print.
Sony Corporation. (2008). 3M DSC-W110 Digital Camera User Manual. Retrieved from
http://camera.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/3m/dscw110.html.
Whirlpool. (1993). Whirlpool DISHWASHERS Dishwasher User Manual. Retrieved from
http://kitchen.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/whirlpool/dishwashers_1.html.

Did Not Meet

Expectations
Thesis Statement
Use of Textual Evidence
from Genres

Met Expectations

Exceeded
Expectations

XX

Use of Course Readings

Analysis

X-

Organization/Structure

X/X-

Attention to
Genre/Conventions and
Rhetorical Factors

X/X-

Sentence-level Clarity,

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Mechanics, Flow
Deanna,
Other Comments
Nice work here. To take this to the next level, here are some ideas:

-I need you to integrate a lot more textual evidence. Help me SEE

what you want me to see -- that way, youll convince me of your
claims. Try to avoid just writing about the sources; actually use
the sources.

- I need more of an argument here. Move past describing and get

to evaluating -- try to pinpoint the so what? of this assignment as
much as possible. These pieces might/probably have significantly
different audiences -- OK, so why is that worth knowing? From a
writers perspective? A readers? Someone in the technical
manual-making field?

--Think about what kind of structure/organization would be best

suited for your argument. I couldnt really anticipate where you
were going, paragraph to paragraph, and Id like to be able to do
that. Try to think if theres a best way of structuring your paper
so that your argument unfolds in a way thats reader-friendly -that builds.

One last thing: please dont be afraid to inject some of YOUR

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voice into this paper. I dont wanna read just any old paper; I
wanna read a paper from Deanna.

Again, though: solid work here, sister. :)

Z
7.5/10