Genre as a unit of the language system: linguistic/rhetorical approaches to assessing its specificity

INTRODUCTION. The relevance of the research lies in the need for a clearer definition of the concept of “genre”, as well as in establishing its place in the system of other units and categories of language. Accordingly, the aim of the study is to determine the place of the concept of “genre” in the hierarchy of language levels. MATERIALS AND METHODS. The object of the study at the first stage was the works of linguists, analyzed using comparative-comparative and interpretative methods, as well as elements of model theory and linguistic systemology. At the second level, using methods of abstraction, description, and generalization, the general characteristics of the concept of “rhetorical genre” are formulated. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. The analysis of the discussion on the principles of building a hierarchy of language tiers shows the need to make this system more meaningful and voluminous by adding a “third dimension”: systems of models for the formation of linguistic units. In this case, the genre should be considered the top tier of the model system. CONCLUSION. The author concludes that the rhetorical understanding of the concept of “genre” as a sufficiently stable abstract model of utterance makes it possible to use it, along with other models of constructing linguistic units to describe the general system of language/speech.