Ferguson 1

Sabrina Ferguson
Nancy Roche
Writing 1010-018
23 September 2014
MythBusting Literacy
In James Gees article, The Literacy Myth and the History of Literacy, he talks about
how literacy is a concept that has been misunderstood by people for hundreds of years; the
beliefs being that more literate people have a higher intelligence, are better people, and develop
better communities. Gee discusses the modern belief that those in a higher social class are better
than those in less fortunate circumstances. He also talks about Plato and his views on literacy and
writing. The definition of literacy that Gee gives differs from that of most other people and
creates a new way of thinking about language.
In his article, Gee defines literacy as being not only writing and reading, but day-to-day
communication. His definition differs from that of others who think it is mastered in the class
rooms of schools. But in Gees opinion, we gain an understanding of reading and writing during
our years in school, but the true mastery of literacy comes from experience. An example of this
concept could be that you have read an entire manual about how to change the oil in your car.
You have been given the tools and instructions, but you cannot fully understand until you have
tried it for yourself. With this being said, Gee believes everyone in the recent years is held up to
standards set by those of a higher class; higher class being better educated. He states that the
standards are seen in the school systems of today; training kids who come from lower class
families to behave more like the rich kids. He thinks it has become less about bettering ones self
and more about teaching children to listen to orders.

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Gee uses quotes from Plato to further bust the literacy myths. Plato believed that writing
would replace the need for humans to use their memory and create a dependence on the written
text. Being a now true statement, for all people rely on the written language to help them
remember; it has taken the form of textbooks, notes, texts, letters and so on. He also said that
writing gives a person power and whoever interprets the writing also has power. Plato uses the
ironic strategy of writing to oppose writing, and teaches that writing should be carefully used so
that the text never loses its voice. His belief is that politicians and people with similar intentions
only use writing to get what they want and influencing others instead of using it to educate.
Gees article sheds light on a problem that society has had for hundreds of years. He talks
about how the literacy language is a discourse that cannot be taught in a class room but has to be
acquired through experience in the world. Gee also discusses how schools can only teach so
much and people of today seem to think that those of a lower education lack this high level of
literacy. His belief is that schools need to spend more time focusing on teaching real life skills
and helping students to grow, rather than spending so much time on discipline. To him writing
should be a thoughtful process used for good and to help others learn. His message being that
literacy is so much more than being able to read a book or write a paper, it is a skill that needs to
be mastered to help yourself and better your communication.

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Works Cited
Gee, James Paul. Social Linguistics and Literacies. 3rd ed. New York: Routledge, 2008. Print.