Writing and LiteracyChapter 7

What is this sign?

What is this sign?

It is called the universal sign for “women” but is it really universal?

Do all women wear dresses?

What is this sign?

What about some traditional men’s clothing?

Contacting Other Planets

This plate was designed for Pioneer 10 in case other life forms found it

Do you think other life forms (or even other cultures of humans) would interpret it the same way?

Symbols

So, symbols are arbitrary

Even sounds can be symbols

What sound do these words have in common?SureShoreMachineMotion Is the sound spelled the same in each word?

Writing

Is this the place writing was invented?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItsRI4IyyDY

Writing

Writing is also symbolic

It is a way to record language by visible marks

Speech is basic, but reading and writing are more complex and require more learning

Complete writing systems Can record all thoughts and words

Partial writing systems Limited by what it can convey by cultural understandings NASA plaque

Writing

A phonetic sign is a graphic representation of one or more sounds of a languageThe example of the four words earlier

A semantic sign is a graphic representation of a specific idea or meaning <2> means ‘two’ <4> can mean ‘four’ or ‘for’ (in texting)

Writing

Are languages with few phonetic or semantic signs less evolved or less valuable than those with many?

Writing

Pictrographic writing uses pictures or images to represent things

Ex: the women sign

Rebus writing uses one picture to represent two or more words that sound the sameThis lets you move beyond limitations of pictographsExample: picture of an eye can stand for eye or I

Writing

Logographic writing uses graphic signs to represent words or ideas

Ex: Mayan

Writing

Writing

Syllabic writing uses graphic signs to represent individual syllables

‘cat’ has one, so one sign

‘caterpillar’ has four, so four signs

This is a significant step in the development of writing styels

Example: Japanese, Chinese, Mayan

Japanese Hiragana:

Writing

Logosyllabic writing combines the logographic and syllabic forms

Example: modern Chinese

The words for ‘sheep’ and ‘ocean’ sound the same, so you can use the same sign for each; however, if you add a sign for ‘water,’ then you specify ocean and not sheep.

Writing

Alphabetic writing uses graphic signs to represent individual consonants and vowels

We probably got our alphabet from ancient Phonecians

Our first two letters are a and b

In ancient Greek they are alpha and beta

In Hebrew they are aleph and bet

Writing

A final, interesting, example is Khipus (Inca)

Language read by tying knots in cords

Literacy

What does it mean if someone is literate?

Illiterate?

What are social judgments that come with being illiterate?

Does being literate involve reading, writing, and speaking?

Literacy

The autonomous approach to literacy says that reading and writing go together and are different from speaking

But many think that being literate should include being able to explain what you read or write

But do people have the same interpretations of what they read or write?

Literacy

Different interpretations are the heart of the practice approach to literacy

Literacy is a set of behaviors that exists in a cultural context

Remember the article on reading Shakespeare to the African tribe?

Literacy and Orality

Refresher on the word orality: the ability to hear and speak

There are many cultures without written language

Literacy and orality are different

Look at pg. 219

Literacy and Orality

Are oral languages not literate? Do they not have understanding of their world? Be careful of judgments

Literacy and Power

Literacy can create different conditions in which certain kinds of literacy are rewarded (seen as ‘proper’) and other kinds are less acceptable

They key is that one kind of literacy is not inherently better than another, but that one may be more appropriate or expected in a specific situation

Literacy and Power: Colonialism

In a society, who should have the right to learn to read and write?

Mayan had their own writing system, but Spanish conquistadores expected the people they conquered to be illiterate and uncivilized

They labeled the writing as pagan and “dictated by the Devil” and their job was to convert them, which meant destroying their language

What other ways has Colonialism affected indigenous languages?

Literacy and Power: Colonialism