Literacy Narrative
“I read with equal parts joy and desperation. I loved those books, but I also knew that love had only one purpose. I was trying to save my life.”
- Sherman Alexie, “Superman and Me”
You will write a literacy narrative of your own. Like the pieces we will examine in class, yours will relate to a particular experience (or set of related experiences) that somehow led you to recognize and define the role of reading and/or writing in your life. Alternatively, you might choose to write about when seeing your identity reflected in literature or something else you have read (or not seeing it) held particular meaning or importance for you.
Your challenge is to move beyond the obvious when articulating your relationship with reading and/or writing, and to think deeply or originally about what they mean to you. You’ll notice that the more memorable moments in the essays we read examine the unexpected, using metaphor, imagery, or a particularity of detail, targeting an experience that is strongly personal.
Reflect upon what you have already considered about yourself as reader and writer (including anything inspired by reading Stephen King’s memoir and our other readings), and use your reflections to shape your text. Use details, memories, perceptions, and ideas that can be gathered up then arranged with purpose. Was there a trigger moment in your experience? Did your relationship with a particular aspect of reading or writing develop gradually or suddenly? How does reading or writing provide a framework for other aspects of your life?
This is a personal piece, which allows for first-person expression and a relatively informal tone, but take special care to use highly evocative language that is rich in detail.
Tips:
Keep purpose in mind. What do you want the reader to get out of reading your piece?
Keep tone in mind. How do you want the reader to perceive you, your experience, and your attitude toward reading and writing?
Choose words that will make a difference as you construct your piece; diction matters.
Be particularly mindful of how your piece opens and closes. What kinds of choices have you made in connection with those portions of your essay?
Narration is important, but this piece should not simply retell events; use description, snippets of dialogue, flashback / flashforward, or other techniques as you reflect on the event and its significance in your life then and/or now. Keep in mind that non-linear does not mean disjointed. Organization should be purposeful and clear.
An excellent guide to getting started may be found here.
Length: Approximately two pages Formatting: 1.5 spacing, 1-inch margins, 12-point Times font or equivalent
Mentor texts (2016):
CORE TEXTS:
Stephen King, On Writing
Frederick Douglass, "Learning to Read and Write"
Sherman Alexie, "Superman and Me"
Roxanne Gay, "I Once Was Miss America"
SUPPLEMENTAL TEXTS:
Cathleen Schine, "I Was a Teenage Illiterate"
Jason Bishop, "How Cross-Dressing and 'Mommie Dearest' Helped Teen Confront Bully"
Sarah Winifred Searle, "Fatness, Femininity, and the Media We Deserve"
Storm Reyes (via StoryCorps), "The Bookmobile"
Tyrese L. Coleman, "Reading Jane Eyre While Black"
Viet Thanh Nguyen, "Losing My Son to Reading"
This assignment addresses the following Ontario Ministry of Education expectations for ENG3U:
Reading and Literature Studies:
1.1. read a variety of student- and teacher-selected texts from diverse cultures and historical periods, identifying specific purposes for reading
1.5. extend understanding of texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, by making appropriate and increasingly rich connections between the ideas in them and personal knowledge, experience, and insights; other texts; and the world around them
Writing:
1.1. identify the topic, purpose, and audience for a variety of writing tasks
1.4. identify, sort, and order main ideas and supporting details for writing tasks, using a variety of strategies and selecting the organizational pattern best suited to the content and the purpose for writing
2.2. establish a distinctive voice in their writing, modifying language and tone skilfully and effectively to suit the form, audience, and purpose for writing
2.3. use appropriate descriptive and evocative words, phrases, and expressions imaginatively to make their writing clear, vivid, and interesting for their intended audience
2.4. write complete sentences that communicate their meaning clearly and effectively, skilfully varying sentence type, structure, and length to suit different purposes and making smooth and logical transitions between ideas
3. applying knowledge of conventions (spelling, vocabulary, punctuation, grammar) in drafts and revisions