Science Fiction is itself a genre, of course, a type or form of literature, of genre fiction, with distinctive, identifiable characteristics, its own conventions and formulae, its own sub-genres, its own motifs, and its own iconography. Webster's New World Dictionary defines generic as: of, applied to, or referring to a whole kind, class, or group; inclusive or general. 

But "generic" can also mean (WNWD's second meaning) "without a brand name." Several years ago a publisher/marketer, aware of both meanings, released--at Christmas as I recall, and about the same time that "generic" drugs" became part of the national consciousness--a series of "generic" books: genre books with plain white (generic)covers, each with a title like "Generic Western," "Generic Horror," "Generic Science Fiction." Below each title appeared a generic guarantee:  "Guaranteed to include a cowboy, an Indian, a bad guy in a black hat, a horse, a runaway stagecoach, etc." (on the Western, of course). I don't recall precisely what the generic SF novel's guarantee said, but I would imagine that it  probably made mention of space travel, robots, the future, time travel.

Science Fiction is a genre of course but it is hardly generic (in the WNWD's second sense). The question of SF as a genre is, of course, a major topic of this course. On this page you will find materials to assist you in your own consideration.