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"Genre" is originally a French
word meaning "kind", "sort" or "type"; in
grammatical terminology, it refers to the artificial concept of
masculine or feminine grammatical
gender (the noun "genre" itself belongs to the masculine
gender in French, for example).
In the field of literary endeavor, we often refer to the "poetic
genres" and the "prose
genres"; poetry
might thus be subdivided into epic, lyric and dramatic,
while prose
might be divided into fiction
and non-fiction.
Obviously these can be further subdivided ad libitum: thus,
dramatic poetry can be divided into comedy, tragedy, melodrama
and so forth. This division can continue more or less as far as one
likes: "comedy" has its own genres (farce, comedy
of manners, burlesque, satire,
etc.).
The divisions called "genres" may be made on the basis of
formal, thematic or other criteria. The distinction between fiction and
non-fiction thus depends on the use of invention; that between prose and
poetry on the use of verse;
that between comedy and tragedy on the selection and treatment of a protagonist
and situation that are noble or vulgar, and of a point of view that is
sympathetic or not to the protagonist's plight. For this reason,
"genre" is such a flexible and mutable term that it has been
applied to almost every possible subdivision of artistic endeavor.
Quite clearly, sub-genre might well be more
appropriate than "genre" in many, perhaps most cases.
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Speculative fiction is an all-encompassing
term which includes science fiction, alternative
history (fiction), horror
and fantasy.
The term is often used among writers and publishers who wish to break
out of what is commonly called the "sci-fi ghetto".
There is an unfortunate tendency, among both many publishers and a large
segment of the reading public, to expect only science fiction stories from
a person who has once written science fiction. Writers such as Harlan
Ellison (an outspoken advocate of the term) have deliberately rejected
identification as a science fiction writer for precisely such reasons;
they don't reject the science fiction genre (in which Ellison, for
example, still participates) but they do reject pigeonholing their work.
The abbreviation "sf" (usually spelled in lowercase, but
occasionally uppercase) is often used to indicate either speculative
fiction or what is traditionally known as "science fiction".
This term is coming into more frequent usage among younger fans who
wish to break down the literary barriers between the horror, fantasy, and
science fiction genres.
The term is also sometimes used without any implication of breaking
down barriers or breaking out of the ghetto, simply as a convenient
shorthand way to refer to multiple genres at once. A variation of this
term is "Speculative Literature".
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