Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Reading Literature
"what a school may define as reading may not take account of what students read in various contets other than the classroom." For example, when I was younger I could read novel after novel about my favorite soccer players, and not caring a "darn" about what we were reading in class. If my grades suffered in my school reading classes, teachers would rightfully assume that I couldn't read well. The question of what exactly is a literature or a book is brought up in Swed's article. Handbills, signs, graffiti, sheet music, junk mail, and even sheet music are left out of the category of literature.
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“literacy, does not lead to learning of new knowledge nor involve individuals in new methods of inquiry, Traditional processes of production, trade, and education are little affected by the written word.” (Cole 132)
ReplyDeleteI’d have to ask the same question as you; why are sheet music, graffiti, and things like junk mail not considered literature? Certain messages graffiti displays do make you think, playing or singing sheet music definitely can put you in a certain mood, and junk mail can certainly provide information (although it probably useless)
So what do we consider “real literature”?
Just like you I’d prefer to read a book, that I choose, instead of one assigned in a classroom. Unfortunately, we have to read what school deems as “literature” to get a decent grade.