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Literacy narratives are effective forms of communicating one’s personal experience concerning their acquisition of literacy.  When these narratives successfully portray shifts in identities, they indicate that a persevering hero has overcome the odds and achieved great feats in their literacy.  Literacy is a concept that is highly evident in the life of every person in the world.  Communication is highly difficult if a person has no knowledge in literacy, and an advanced literacy would prove highly beneficial in one’s life.  Although I focus on the shift from victim to hero, there are numerous shifts in different identities that can happen with similar benefits with the same goal: achieving the highest level of literacy possible.  The acquisition of literacy is a vital factor in the early development of people, and must be improved as much as possible so a person can effectively communicate with people around the world in the most easy way possible.

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Throughout the literacy narrative, the identity of the narrative can shift depending on the context of the story, used effectively when the narrative starts as a victim narrative.  There are numerous different approaches a student can take to display this shift, and these shifts can be in a negative manner as Williams explains, “Not all the identities students adopt in literacy narratives are empowering… students who wrote about being stigmatized through their literacy experiences, particularly in school where the student is the victim of bad or insensitive teaching” (344).  As Williams explains, identities in a narrative are not always portrayed positively, but instead, can express feelings of displeasure from writers. These students often conform to the victim identity of a narrative, but still may be open to change. There is evidence in real literacy narratives of this as exemplified by Hien Nguyen as he states, “My hard work was never acknowledged by my own English teacher… my English teacher did not request for me to move up to the Honors class, which was disappointing, because I did not want him again for next year” (2).  As shown in Hien’s narrative, he had a bad experience with an English teacher in high school that negatively impacted his literacy. His teacher served as a sponsor as a witholder of literacy, and directly held Hien back from taking the Honors class. Hien was a victim to insensitive teaching, but thankfully, the identity shift is present and he is able to find good sponsors that will help him.

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Throughout the literacy narrative, the identity of the narrative can shift depending on the context of the story, used effectively when the narrative starts as a victim narrative.  There are numerous different approaches a student can take to display this shift, and these shifts can be in a negative manner as Williams explains, “Not all the identities students adopt in literacy narratives are empowering… students who wrote about being stigmatized through their literacy experiences, particularly in school where the student is the victim of bad or insensitive teaching” (344).  As Williams explains, identities in a narrative are not always portrayed positively, but instead, can express feelings of displeasure from writers. These students often conform to the victim identity of a narrative, but still may be open to change. Though the protagonist of these narratives may seem hopeless, shifts in identity of literacy narratives proves that these students find a way to restore their positivity and skills concerning their literacy.  There is evidence in real literacy narratives of this as exemplified by Hien Nguyen. Hien was an up and coming student who often struggled with his literacy, but didn’t affect his work ethic as he states, “My hard work was never acknowledged by my own English teacher… my English teacher did not request for me to move up to the Honors class, which was disappointing, because I did not want him again for next year” (2). As shown in Hien’s narrative, he had a bad experience with an English teacher in high school that negatively impacted his literacy.  His teacher served as a sponsor of his literacy, but acted as a witholder of this literacy, and directly held Hien back from taking the Honors class. Hien was a victim to insensitive teaching, but thankfully, the identity shift is present and he is able to find good sponsors that will help him.

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An identity that pairs well with the victim narrative is the hero identity.  It is important for the writers to feel empowered when writing a hero narrative, as they must portray their narrative in a manner that emphasizes their personal literary success.  Especially the shift from victim to hero, as they first felt as though there is no fun and hope in literacy, but they are able to change in a positive manner. Williams explains, “In these narratives, it is the traditional individualistic heroic attributes- perseverance, self-reliance, self-confidence- that allow them to triumph” (343).  After being a victim, it is up for the writer to find these heroic characteristics within his or her self to triumph over the victim role and become a hero. There are numerous different characteristics that define a hero narrative, and it is vital for the writer to exemplify these characteristics to best portray the hero identity. Hien’s narrative shifts from victim to hero as he interacts with a new sponsor as a facilitator.  Hien explains, “Along with reading and writing better, I also learned that to grow in a difficult subject, you need to take matters into your own hands and take the challenge” (3). In Hien’s narrative, he begins as a victim. Through the helpful guidance of his teachers who also serve as his sponsors, he learns how to challenge himself and defy the odds to extend his literacy to the highest possible margin. He has his literacy withheld but overcomes this adversity and emerges as a hero.  He exemplifies the perseverance attribute that Williams explains, and effectively shifts his literacy narrative from the victim identity to hero.

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In order for these shifts in identity to be effective, the multiple identities a narrative can have must be connected and relevant to each other.  An identity that pairs well with the victim narrative is the hero identity. It is important for the writers to feel empowered when writing a hero narrative, as they must portray their narrative in a manner that emphasizes their personal literary success.  Especially the shift from victim to hero, as they first felt as though there is no fun and hope in literacy, but they are able to change in a positive manner. Williams explains, “In these narratives, it is the traditional individualistic heroic attributes- perseverance, self-reliance, self-confidence- that allow them to triumph” (343).  After being a victim, it is up for the writer to find these heroic characteristics within his or her self to triumph over the victim role and become a hero. There are numerous different characteristics that define a hero narrative, and it is vital for the writer to exemplify these characteristics to best portray the hero identity. Again, we can use Hien’s literacy narrative to find how effective these shifts in identities can truly be.  Hien’s narrative shifts from victim to hero as he interacts with a new sponsor as a facilitator. Hien explains, “Along with reading and writing better, I also learned that to grow in a difficult subject, you need to take matters into your own hands and take the challenge” (3). In Hien’s narrative, he begins as a victim. Through the helpful guidance of his teachers who also serve as his sponsors, he learns how to challenge himself and defy the odds to extend his literacy to the highest possible margin.  He has his literacy withheld but overcomes this adversity and emerges as a hero. Through this narrative, Hien not only largely increases his literacy, but he learns important life lessons that he can also take away and apply to his life and day to day actions. He exemplifies the perseverance attribute that Williams explains, and effectively shifts his literacy narrative from the victim identity to hero.

1.  I use the work of Alexander and Williams in my writing, specifically their studies on the different identities that literacy narratives can exemplify and shifts in these identities that take place in these narratives.  So far in my paper,  my peers think I do a good job at connecting the ideas of Alexander and Williams to the literacy narratives I am examining.  However, through peer revision they made a few suggestions that relate to these.  They encourage me to delve deeper in these connections between texts, and add more context and explanation in my writing.  My narratives focus on identity shifts,  and I believe these identity shifts are very vital for people in their personal acquisition of literacy.  When writing my final draft, it is very important that I make these connections as clear and concise as possible for the reader to easily understand.
2. I introduce the work of Alexander and Williams in my introduction paragraph, and my peers believe I did a good job at this.  I only use a sentence or two to introduce each text, and keep the introductions concise and straight  to the point.  However, I could add more to my introduction of Hien Nguyen’s literacy narrative.  I go right in and use a quote from his literacy narrative without first introducing to the reader who he is and why his literacy narrative is in my paper.  I just have to add an extra sentence to explain to the reader who Hien is and what his narrative entails.  I believe I can keep my introduction of the Alexander and Williams texts as they are.
3. I use solid evidence from both the Alexander and Williams texts in my writing.  I pull quotes from the texts that support my claims effectively and that feel like they belong in my paper.  I do the same with the literacy narratives, as they quotes I chose to use from these also effectively support my claims and tie in with my connections to Alexander and Williams.  One comment that my peers made that I must keep in mind through revision is my explanation of the evidence.  I should add more explanation using “I say” techniques to effectively maximize the potential in my writing and in my paper.  Through keeping all this in mind, I believe I can improve my paper through revision and make my final draft the best version as possible.

 

Throughout the literacy narrative, the identity of the narrative can shift depending on the context of the story, used effectively when the narrative starts as a victim narrative.  There are numerous different approaches a student can take to display this shift, and these shifts can be in a negative manner as Williams explains, “Not all the identities students adopt in literacy narratives are empowering… students who wrote about being stigmatized through their literacy experiences, particularly in school where the student is the victim of bad or insensitive teaching” (344).  As Williams explains, identities in a narrative are not always portrayed positively, but instead, can express feelings of displeasure from writers. These students often conform to the victim identity of a narrative, but still may be open to change. There is evidence in real literacy narratives of this as exemplified by Hien Nguyen as he states, “My hard work was never acknowledged by my own English teacher… my English teacher did not request for me to move up to the Honors class, which was disappointing, because I did not want him again for next year” (2).  As shown in Hien’s narrative, he had a bad experience with an English teacher in high school that negatively impacted his literacy. His teacher served as a sponsor as a witholder of literacy, and directly held Hien back from taking the Honors class. Hien was a victim to insensitive teaching, but thankfully, the identity shift is present and he is able to find good sponsors that will help him.

An identity that pairs well with the victim narrative is the hero identity.  It is important for the writers to feel empowered when writing a hero narrative, as they must portray their narrative in a manner that emphasizes their personal literary success.  Williams explains, “In these narratives, it is the traditional individualistic heroic attributes- perseverance, self-reliance, self-confidence- that allow them to triumph” (343). There are numerous different characterisitcs that define a hero narrative, and it is vital for the writer to exemplify these characteristics to best portray the hero identity.  Hien’s narrative shifts from victim to hero as he interacts with a new sponsor as a facilitator. Hien explains, “Along with reading and writing better, I also learned that to grow in a difficult subject, you need to take matters into your own hands and take the challenge” (3). In Hien’s narrative, he begins as a victim. He has his literacy withheld but overcomes this adversity and emerges as a hero.  He exemplifies the perseverance attribute that Williams explains, and effectively shifts his literacy narrative from the victim identity to hero.

 

 

 

One area of literary acquisition I am interested in is the shift in identity a Literacy Narrative can take throughout its course.  Most specifically, the shift from the victim identity to either a hero or success narrative is what interests me the most.  The story of how a person can start as a victim, and then something substantial happens to them is quite fascinating to me.

1. Hannah Clark- The Year I Started to Hate Writing
2. Hien Nguyen- The Process for Getting a Better Teacher for English
3. Julie McGarvey- Sixty?
4. Hunter Ellis- Gram Why Are You Crying?
5. Shamus Gordon- The 180
6. Brandon Rico- The New Side of Literature

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matthew’s LN Worksheet Answers (Couldn’t upload screenshot)

Q4. For each SPONSOR, imagine how he/she might view the central literacy moment in the story. Williams suggests the value of this thinking in suggesting that students “rewrite the key moment (or moments) of the narrative from the position of a different identity” (345). WRITE ABOUT the SPONSOR’s perspective. Briefly note relevant detail/evidence from the LN that suggests that perspective.

Mrs. Ryan: Would be proud of Matthew’s hard work and dedication to improving his literacy.  Although she left after a year, she helped Matthew tremendously by placing him in the correct courses for his situation. Ms. Latinski: Would also be proud of Matthew’s progression.  She worked with Matthew extra to help him understand his concepts in school and better himself as a student and a reader.  She would appreciate the positive portrayal Matthew defines her as. Ms. Murray: Again, would be proud of Matthew and honored by his representation of her in the narrative.  She helped Matthew tremendously in his studies and he greatly benefitted from her help. She would also appreciate the example Matthew gives about her putting her foot behind her head to help Matthew remember what the word “pliable” means.

 

Q5. What strikes you as INTERESTING, COMPLICATED, or otherwise worth NOTING? (Use shorthand or fragments, but attempt to say WHY it’s interesting/complicated.) Here YOU start to decide what’s important FOR YOU.

What is interesting to me about this Literacy Narrative is that each sponsor serves as a facilitator for literacy.  Most narratives that I have read usually contain multiple sponsors, one of which withholds literacy along with another sponsor who helps facilitate it for the writer.  In this case however, all three of Matthew’s teachers serve as facilitators and help him tremendously in his quest for high literacy.

Sam

Sam’s literacy narrative follows the structure of a “Success” narrative which I will be focusing on.  Alexander says, “Students like Anna value the success master narrative as a lens through which they understand their literate experiences, and they do so by generalizing about literacy and its power of pointing to future success” (617).  A quote from Sam’s paper that relates to this is, “As I continue to grow as a student and a person, I hope with time I can find excitement in all types of writing, no matter the topic” (5).  Sam recognized is literate experience as a moment in which he discovered a love for writing.  This early confidence stuck with him throughout his childhood and developing years and has benefited his literacy.  He credits his experience for developing him into a good writer when writing about passionate topics.

Blake

Blake’s literacy narrative follows the structure of a “Hero” narrative that I am focusing on.  Alexander says, “Because she tries hard enough, the story goes on, she is ultimately successful” (619).  A quote from Blake’s paper relating to Alexander’s quote is, “I see now it was because she was holding me to a higher standard because she knew I had the ability to succeed in my work, but I would rush through it and not worry about it” (Beverage 2).  Blake spent lots of time trying to find his mistake in his paper, which can be traced as similar to Anna’s struggle.  Through perseverance and self motivation, both individuals were able to overcome their struggle and came out with new knowledge to their literacy power.

Kayla

Kayla’s literacy narrative portrays her English teacher, Mr. Stritch has her literacy sponsor.  Brandt says,” Sponsors, as I have come to think of them are any agents,… who enable, support, teach, model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy” (556).  A quote from Kayla’s literacy narrative that relates to this is “Freshmen year of high school my English teacher, Mr. Stritch, was the person who ruined writing for me” (Farrell 1).  A person who suppresses literacy can still be considered as a sponsor of literacy as illustrated by Brandt’s quote.  Mr. Stritch was responsible for Kayla’s education in the English subject, and he miserably failed to do so, thus withholding her from achieving as high a level of literacy as she had the opportunity for.

Hannah

Just like in Blake’s literacy narrative, Hannah wrote a narrative that follows the “Hero” idea.  A quote from Alexander is “Little narratives of hero, then, support the notion that specific versions of individual effort and hard work are the ultimate factors of literate success” (619).  A quote from Hannah’s literacy narrative that indicates it’s identity is, “I was so proud of my paper, no acceptance letter or B minus was going to change that.  I did everything I could to go above and beyond” (3).   Using Alexander’s logic the hero narrative can be achieved if the protagonist puts in lots of hard work into his or her literacy.  In this case, Hannah put everything she had into her paper, and despite not getting the high grade she may have been expecting, she was ultimately satisfied with her effort on the assignment.

1.  Reading and writing is often not at the top of the list for most people’s favorite areas of education.  I believe that people do not fully realize the relevance and importance it has in our everyday lives and in the economy as well.  In the modern day, technology has taken over just about everything.  Throughout an average day, I would say I read the most words on my phone compared to any other form that contains text.  The material people read on their phones may not always contain the most difficult grammar and good context and as a result, people may subconsciously train their brains to simply be acquainted with lower level words.  Personally, I read most of the words I read throughout a day on my smart phone, but I am mindful enough to try and always continue to expand my vocabulary so I can translate it to my reading and writing skills.  Also in the age of computers, many people have unlimited resources at hand when it comes to writing.  They can receive help from anywhere online and this may handicap their writing ability.  They can simply use these tools for help in the moment instead of actually advancing their writing skills.
2. A “Master Narrative” is an overarching story people tell themselves about their experiences in relation to the culture, literature, or history of society.  “Little Narratives” are unsanctioned, artistic, and imaginative.  They are less generalizable and more individualized and situated.  The contrast here is that a master narrative is more factual and may relate to society as a whole where as little narratives relate more to the individual.  Alexander states, “little narratives are often told by marginalized groups, such as women and minorities, whose shorties run counter to the dominant literacy myth” (611).  The differences between master and little narratives are crucial in order to fully understand both the concepts.  As Alexander states, little narratives are more generalized to minority groups.
3. For me, the child prodigy cultural narrative is very interesting.  I relate to this because I wrote one of my literacy narratives on a topic pertaining to this.  In my story, I was in 5th grade and my reading level was pretty high.  As Alexander explains, “Excels at reading and writing from an early age and is put on display for others to see his or her brilliance and intellectual acumen” (615)  Using Alexander’s logic, the child prodigy cultural narrative relates to narratives where the protagonist who excel in literacy from an early age, and display their accelerated skill to others.  Another interesting cultural narrative is the victim narrative.  Alexander illustrates this as, “a victim of negative literacy experiences, in or out of school; casts blame for negative literacy experiences” (615).  In these literacy narratives, the protagonist often plays the role of the victim, and puts blame on others such as a parent, teacher, etc. for their dismay in reading or writing.  They often do not take blame for their displeasure in literacy and are quick to point fingers to other people for their so-called “wrongdoings”.

ENG 110I