Category Schemata A critic cannot treat a text as absolutely unique, but must instead find the larger class with which it belongs. The idea of genre, such as a War or a Western, is the most common grouping mobilized in film interpretation, although no strict definition of a single genre has won widespread acceptance. Since genre boundaries vary and overlap, no strictly deductive set of principles can explain genre groupings. Therefore, interpreters no more have strict definitions of genre than speakers of English have definitions of game, but instead have open concepts of genres. Platoon can serve as a prototypical war film whereas Dr. Strangelove could not since it also falls under the category of comedy that not all war films do.
Critics often identify the genre only to aid in interpreting a particular work.
This diversity serves as the mark of an institution that offers the interpreter many tools for making meaning. These categories allow the critic to establish referential or explicit meaning as a point of departure, and can be revised and offer fruitful points of difference and dispute. In this respect, Dr. Strangelove can be discussed as a war film, a comedy, or as a Cold War film. New category schemata can be derived from other arts or media, and the critic can also acquire some individuality by creating his or her own genre. No thought starts from scratch, and no interpretation can do without category schemata.