@article {734, title = {Genre Theory and Family Resemblance{\textemdash}Revisited}, journal = {Poetics}, volume = {20}, year = {1991}, note = {not available from library subscription online?}, month = {1991}, pages = {123{\textendash}138}, abstract = {In the following discussion I will examine the application of Wittgenstein{\textquoteright}s concept of family resemblance to genre theory. Despite its popularity among literary theorists, there is sometimes a discrepancy between the loose concept of family resemblance, at least in its negative-radical version, and the practical assumptions made about genres. In order to overcome the inadequacies of existing applications of the concept, I will propose two ways in which Wittgenstein{\textquoteright}s concept can be fruitfully applied to genre theory. First, by using certain working hypotheses in cognitive psychology, based on the concept of family resemblance, I will argue that literary genres are perceived as structured categories, with a {\textquoteleft}hard core{\textquoteright} consisting of prototypical members. These prototypical members are characterized by the fact that they bear a relatively high degree of resemblance to each other. Second, by focusing on the analogy between the internal structure of literary genres and that of families one can establish a {\textquoteleft}genealogical{\textquoteright} line of literary genres, i.e., the series of writers who have participated in shaping, reshaping and transmitting the textual heritage established by the {\textquoteleft}founding father{\textquoteright} of the genre, including the dialectical relationship of {\textquoteleft}parents{\textquoteright} and {\textquoteleft}children{\textquoteright} in genre history.}, keywords = {family resemblance, genre, literary, prototype, Wittgenstein}, author = {Fishelov, David} }