Abstract of

Rewriting Identity: Social Meanings of Literacy and "Re-visions" of Self

Jabari Mahiri

Amanda J. Godley

This article describes and analyzes ways that individual views of self are connected to ways in which society views and gives meaning to writing and other literacy practices. It also explores how an individual's identity is affected by both the ability and the inability to write, and by cultural "master myths" (Gee, 1990) concerning literacy. This was done through a study of the life story and perceptions of literacy of a highly literate Latina woman who found that she could no longer write because she had developed Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. This condition, caused by the nerves and tendons of the hand rubbing against bones in the wrist (the carpal tunnel), resulted in the informant experiencing debilitating pain when she moved her hands to write or type. Consequently, she was no longer able to engage in some of the key practices of literacy that she had come to take for granted. Because the debilitating condition constrained her manual ability only, this study was able to look separately at one of the two pervasive practices of literacy—reading and writing—that are usually paired. This provided a unique occasion for exploring ways that particular acts of writing had not only been used to create textual meanings, but had also come to represent various social/personal meanings for the writer as well. This extensive qualitative study of the informant's case raised and addressed three central questions regarding key assumptions and beliefs about the nature and uses of literacy and its connections to identity.

Abstract from Mahiri, J., & Godley, A.J. (1998). Rewriting Identity: Social Meanings of Literacy and "Re-visions" of Self. Reading Research Quarterly, 33(4), 416–433. doi: 10.1598/RRQ.33.4.4