Eng 100b Reading Response 1:”The New Literacy” Jeff Richmond

“The New Literacy” Clive Tompson urges the readers to examine some of the more common misconceptions about literacy and technology. Mr. Tompson looks into some statements made by John Sutherland, an english professor at the University College of London, and finds some interesting things. One statement that Mr. Sutherland made was that he thought “texting is dehydrating language into “bleak, bald, sad shorthand.”” Feeding the idea that technology is negatively impacting literacy. Mr. Tompson also sites another professor that has very different views on the topic of modern literacy. Andrea Lunsford, a professor of writing and rhetoric at Stanford University, has done much to shed light on literacy and its growth/decline. Between 2001-06 she collected over fourteen thousand writing samples from students. The evidence led her to a stunning conclusion. Literacy or more accurately writing is practiced more regularly than ever before. She is even to be quoted saying “I think we are in the midst of a literacy revolution the likes of which we haven't seen since the Greek civilization.” A provocative idea for sure. Although Mr. Tompson does not say it directly his article seems to point to the fact that technology is bringing about a positive change in the way we write.

My own view is that the upcoming paradigm shift in literacy will change the way we interact globally. Not just change it but cause a greater connection with others and maybe repair some of habits learned from our intellectual bootstrapping. I concede that no one can be absolutely sure how much we as a race will change as literacy fosters a greater sense of community or interrelationship and lifts many of us out of ignorance. Although many would object that literacy is important but couldn't possibly have that much of an effect, I reply only that through our ability to store and access information (reading and writing) have we been able to grow to the point that we are at now, and have many of the comforts/securities that many of us take for granted. The issue is important because we are not just faced with more people becoming interconnected, but more people expressing themselves with writing. As the proliferation of technology continues the landscape of our interactions will change. Social media is changing the ability to be heard and the amount of people listening. More will become connected through the written word and our voices will be able to be heard in a blink of an eye by many. How much will our current social structures maintain in the light of this accessibility. One can only hope that as we move towards this connection that the written word allows us to share, and technology fosters our want/ability to express ourselves that many of our dividing misconceptions will fall away under the sheer weight of the amount of people able to talk to each other and express themselves. We are social creatures, could this be one of our greatest strengths? Will we get to step closer to our true potential because of the simple act of dialogue? One can hope. I definitely do.