This is probably the best essay that I have written at STP. I am writing about the ends and outs of the North Berry Farm Hunting Club, and how it is considered a discourse community. I enjoyed writing this paper because I am very passionate about North Berry, hunting, and the outdoors.
“Take ‘Em”
Help received on July 13, 2018, from Mrs. Mattie Smith from 14:00-14:30
When most people think about hunting they believe that it is one of the simplest activities to do in the world. One must simply walk into the woods or beside a river with a rifle or shotgun and wait for the specific game that they are hunting to appear. The common thought about hunting clubs is that a group of men, who may or may not have had a little to drink, roam the woods or wade a river together and they shoot at whatever moves. Hunting clubs are a little bit more complex than that. My hunting club in New Kent, Virginia, has been a true discourse community for the past eighty years, as both a farm and a hunting club. In Ann M. Johns discussion about Discourse Communities and Communities at Practice, she explains that “in the term discourse communities, the focus is on texts and language, the genres and lexis that enable members throughout the world to maintain their goals, regulate their membership, and communicate effectively with one another.” The North Berry Farm, which is the club’s name, fits all of this criteria perfectly. The clubs common goals that are to have safe and successful hunts and fishing trips. We also aim to conserve habitats, preserve the natural population of the game in our area, and create a comradery that will flow into our lives outside of our shared love for the outdoors. There is a large text message and email list where all of the members get the necessary information about the various events and chores that are in the near or distant future. There are different reasons why people are a part of this club. Hunters, fishers, nature enthusiasts, and conservationist come from all over central Virginia to be a part of this community. The participatory mechanisms (Swales 25) that provide information and feedback are functions such as steak night, fishing tournaments, skeet and trap practice, and the more apparent events that take place there as well. Older members of the club also pass down knowledge, techniques, tools, and of course, literacy to keep the passion for the land and the outdoors alive within the club.
The different tools that we used in the club are essential to our success within our genres (Kain, Wardle 399). These tools include firearms, archery equipment, vehicles, cell phones and their applications, pen, and paper. Some are only specific to one type of member within the club, while some may be used in all of them. One of the most common tools, and also one of the most essential to all genres in any discourse community, is communication. Within our club, communication is used so that we may reach our many goals. It is the most critical tool that is used and is one of the many characteristics that makes North Berry a successful discourse community. There is also a unique and strategic communication network that is used so our members know what is going on within the club.
As soon as you turn on to the long gravel road that heads in between corn and bean fields there stands a sign and a mailbox. The mailbox reads “North Berry Farm” and the sign reads “Members and Guests only, Violators will be prosecuted! KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN DURING HUNTING SEASON.” This helps the club communicate with its members and others who are allowed on the property. It also serves as a warning to those entering the property as friends and to those who are entering as trespassers. For example, I am not a “full member” of the club yet. This is because I am not paying the monthly or annual fee to be an active member of the club. So, if my friends and I decided to go up there for a weekend all by ourselves and got caught by dad or another member, I would be in serious trouble. That sign’s message is also for the kids like me whenever we aren’t with our fathers or another authorized person, but we refuse to follow that rule. Therefore, I am smart enough to receive the message that I am not allowed at the club by myself or there will be consequences. As you pass the sign and continue on the road you end up at the big house at the corner of the road. It is an old three-story plantation house, but it still works as a warm place to sleep. The road then takes a ninety-degree turn towards the right and remains parallel to the Pamunkey River until it hits the end of the property. At the property line, there are signs that read “POSTED” which tells us that we can no longer move forward. Even if it means that it would be a better spot to hunt, if we are chasing a deer that we saw, or if we just wanted to go for a walk in the fields or woods. These tools of communication establish respect for the leadership of North Berry and our neighbors around us. That way trust can be built and relationships can form.
The most common form of communication at North Berry is our lexicon. The terms that are used on a day-to-day basis that helps the members understand. In a personal interview with Tom Gates, one of our veteran hunters, he explained the different types of the lexicon that we use and why they are so important to the sport. “Some of the particular terms that we use are specific to duck or goose breeds while we are hunting waterfowl,” Gates said. The names are either changed, shortened, or flipped around so that we know precisely what species that we are shooting at if someone sees a flock of ducks. We call Canadian geese “honkers,” Wood ducks are predominantly called “woodies.” Pintails maybe called “Sprig tails” or “Pins,” and Male ducks are known as “Drakes” or “Bulls” while females are called “Hens.” Ring-necked ducks turn into simply “blackheads,” the same way Greater or Lesser Scaup both become “Bluebills.” The slang is not just created and used to identify waterfowl species but is also used to call out movements or name equip. A flock of ducks or geese is simply called a “knot,” and when a knot is flying away after being shot at or it gets spooked, someone would say “they’re burning out” or “they’re high-tailing.” If there is a group circling the blind and they are about to land into our “dec spread,” or decoy spread, one of the veteran hunters, who would be in charge of that hunt, would yell “Take ‘em” when it is time to start firing. By listening to these hunting terms and commands, the result will be that the group will have a more successful hunt. On top of that, by listening for “take em” to shoot instead of shooting whenever you may please, the hunt becomes safer as well. No one likes getting a haircut with birdshot. These terms help our community run smoother and more efficient. It is vital that our members learn these terms so that the members know what is going on in certain situations.
The modern world has also helped us adapt to waterfowl situations by giving us a communication tool that has changed the sport for the better. Cell Phones have unlocked many new doors of how outdoorsmen talk with one another. It has increased the number of ways of how knowledge is passed between scientists, conservationists, and hunters. Anything from apps, phone calls, direct messages, text messages, social media, and more. The apps that are on Cell Phones are tools because there is now a constant state of new and improved techniques, information, gear, firearms, and contacts to hunt with that are continually flowing between people. Technology companies have also worked with conservation groups, and hunting professionals to create phone applications that show hunters and fishermen the weather forecast, wind speed and direction, sunset and sunrise, and the rise and fall of the tides all at once! It can tell them when to wake up in the morning, which spot to hunt or fish that day, how to dress, where to put the decoys, and when they can start and stop shooting. iPhone and Android applications such as “GoOutdoorsVa,” “Primos Wind,” “Ducks Unlimited,” and “Fishbrain” are great examples. More actions can be affected by that, but I don’t have enough time to explain it all.
The original use for which the cell phone was created, calling and texting, is also very beneficial to a hunter’s stealth and knowledge while he is in the woods. People can now communicate without uttering a single word, and all they have to do is lift and put down his/her thumbs. If there is more than one group hunting on the property at the same time, then group leaders can text back and forth to tell each other flock movements, if the inclement weather in the area, or if they want to switch spots or move to make no one is accidentally getting shot at. Another instance where instant communication is helpful to maintain safety in the club is when different members of the hunting club are in action at the same time. For example, when one group is duck hunting, and another is out on the river fishing for striped bass, the cell phone provides the communication that the group leaders need to know where everyone is and what they are doing. That way no one is getting shot at accidentally and the fishermen aren’t scaring away the birds that might be in the hunters’ area. The ability to communicate with each other at an instant has revolutionized the worlds of outdoorsmen everywhere. When you add technology to something that you are passionate about, and the communication between you and those who share the same passion is improved, it will change for the better.
The switch towards more technology usage instead of paper usage has also become beneficial because the communication network that we use is all at our fingertips. Instead of writing down the date of the next club function on a piece of paper or calendar that no one looks at, you can plug it into your phone. Everyone’s name, address, email, and other vital communication information is there as well. These functions help the club run more efficiently, come up with plans with everyone’s input, and it creates an environment so that everyone feels a part of the family. For example, let’s say that there is a specific function on a particular date and it is put into the mass email group to see who can attend. If there is a vast majority of members who cannot participate in that certain date but can the next day or the next week, then the time will most likely be changed. An efficient communication network such as this helps the club to get more events, hunts, and chore days done at a much faster rate. The more chores and activities that we get done, and the quicker that we do them, helps us to achieve our primary goal which is to hunt, fish, and enjoy the outdoors.
The way that members talk to each other, and the tools that we use to talk to each other and those outside of our club create the means of communication. Communication is the central tool that our hunting club uses that makes our operations and business run smoothly. If our operations and business run smoothly, then we can have more fun. The North Berry Farm is a prosperous discourse community because of many things. The respect that younger outdoorsmen have for the veterans, or how the members trust one another with their gear, hunting spots, or their children. Our modernized communication network makes the club run more efficiently, gather more ideas together at the same time, and help one another to accomplish the needs of the community. Tools of all kinds are used within our communication such as education, prior knowledge, imagination, and passion. It creates bonds and memories, knowledge is passed down to younger generations and sets the tone that creates the main goals and characteristics of North Berry, and it’s members.
Word Count: 2041
Citations
Gates, Tom. Personal Interview (Cellphone), 10 July. 2018.
Johns, Ann M. “Discourse Communities and Communities of Practice.” Writing about Writing.
Downs, Wardle. Pp 321-338
Kane, Wardle. “Activity Theory: An Introduction for the Writing Classroom.” Writing about
Writing. Downs, Wardle. Pp 395-405
Swales, John. “The Concept of Discourse Community.” Genre Analysis: English in Academic and
Research Settings. Boston: Cambridge UP, 1990. 21-32. Print.