What, why, and how have you learned to read/write? There is no specific point in time that you suddenly learned to read and write. Even today I continually learn about new words and writing techniques. Thus, by using literature, you build your identity which in turn creates your outlook in life. Trying to evolve how I view society and the world, which the new literature I stumble upon only enriches me and allows me to have an educated opinion. Giving credit to the common phrase of ‘you are what you eat.’ So, what about my experiences that helped me love or hate reading and writing? There have been great experiences in my reading and writing but there have been terrible and unmotivating moments in my literary career. Not until creating this self-conscious reflection, I didn’t realize how much I rely on literature in life. All my experiences no matter how good or how bad they were, were just building and shaping the person I am today. Hence, it is significant for readers and writers to create a literacy narrative which will eventually result in an autoethnographic essay to really unravel how their personality has been shaped by people, moments, or specific texts.
Over the course of my academic career, I haven’t been heavily influenced in terms of finding my style of writing. Rather than writing to what was enjoyable or what was a strength, I tended to follow a rubric which gave me the best grade. However, since leaving high school I have tried to read a few books every few months. This is what my literacy narrative is based on. Although small in comparison to others, the effects have been substantial in how I read, write and think about critical topics. Allowing for a more grounded approach in my life and topics that are prevalent in today’s society. The reasoning why I lost my flare for literacy writing was the structured and limited comprehension writing tasks taken all four years. From my experience majority of my peers and I tended to write to the letter grade rather than what we enjoyed writing or speaking on. Whether it was text analysis on an outdated book or physics case study, it was a grind to turn in a respectable report. Like what James Bradbury said in his 2001 speech about hygiene in writing, (Bradbury, 2001) the quality supersedes any outside factor in your writing. Bradbury took that to a greater level by turning down major screenplays because it didn’t suit his morals. In my case, trying to find topics within school intrigued me and allowed me to want to write a quality piece of work. For the majority time of high school this did not happen but in the last year or so, I was fortunate enough to have a couple of papers or research assignments that allowed me to find and express things I enjoy learning about.
The two books that have greatly influenced me were by Mark Mason and Neil Sachse respectively. Both books elevated my perspective in life while also showing how to deal with adversity or rather taking a different route to others. The differing styles between the books or better known as the code meshing to relate to the audience. Which I believe has shown that colloquialism isn’t at all bad unlike what was taught to me in high school. Mark Mason is a renowned author for his motivational books. In particular, his book called ‘The subtle art of not giving a ****.’ I had seen this book around my hometown for a couple of months but gave it no mind. Until I went away on a basketball trip with a teammate who had the book. He spoke highly of the book and how raised his ‘level of conscience.’ So, I was intrigued to find out whether this book was worth the hype. Still to this day, I recommend this book to people who have trouble with self-confidence or want to better their attitude. In a way, both authors are my sponsors (Brandt) in my development in expanding my literacy skills. Mason emphasizes on topics that were able to translate from pages into everyday life. A specific example of this is a topic he spoke about where he said “Everything worthwhile in life is won through surmounting the associated negative experience. Any attempt to escape the negative, to avoid it or quash it or silence it, only backfires.” (Mason, 2016) This book has a lot of relation to my life whether it be on the court, in the classroom, or in my social life. Mason further explaining that “the avoidance of suffering is a form of suffering. The avoidance of struggle is a struggle. The denial of failure is a failure. Hiding what is shameful is itself a form of shame.” (Mason, 2016) This only feeds into how I think I act and view society. Especially as a young male in society, being able to understand oneself and to express how you feel with others has been a struggle for most. As Suicide is the second leading cause of death of Americans aged 20 to 24. (Heron, 2017) Hence, reading Mason’s book really inspired to become more confident and understand my problems. Mason’s discourse was the first book since primary school that I wanted to read which is a testament to how impactful this book can be. This led to a re-ignition of finding books that will help better myself. Although still in its infancy, my capacity to further build on what mason gave me could be pivotal in bettering how I write, read and speak.
Furthermore, the autobiography of Neil Sachse has a special place in my heart. Neil Sachse was an elite athlete who during his respective sport, had a head-on collision that left him paralyzed from the waist down at the age of twenty-four. (Sachse, 2015) The book was a gift to me by his daughter for a fundraiser my best friend and I put together to help support the Neil Sachse foundation. The importance of this book is both in literacy and my life. Shaping who I am and how I think in all aspects. My good friend became paralyzed after an accident earlier this year. He too was an athlete with a promising career ahead. Sachse’s book speaks on how a vastly new world opened to him and how he was drowning trying to adjust to his new life. (Sachse, 2015) But this book inspired me more than what the words said. I took it one step further and investigated research case studies and reports on the long-term repercussions of this severe spinal injury. Allowing me to better understand the position my friend is in and how I could support him. Shaping how I view new areas that I previously didn’t know about. Although limited in my depth of knowledge, Sachse’s book and the following case studies really ‘chiseled’ my character and allowed me to grow and mature. Similar to mason’s book, it opened up what I thought was unimportant in my life. Although I never met Neil, the legacy of his foundation and his book greatly inspired me to actively research topics that are prevalent within society. Due to the new variety in what I read, the literature has greatly helped shape my views and opinions.
Both books have re-opened an area in my life that I thought would never re-surface. Only giving me the confidence and curiosity to further expand my skill in literacy. Although similar in overall message, the contrasting styles of the books show the many facets of writing and how there is always something for people to enjoy, you just have to find what works for you. These two texts showed me how literature really influences a person, more specifically, me. It isn’t whether you enjoyed the text or not it’s what you garnered and how you grew from that text, no matter if it was positively or negatively.
Sachse, Neil, and Michael Sexton. Playing on: the Story of Neil Sachse. ReadHowYouWant, 2015.
An Evening with Ray Bradbury, University of California Television (UCTV), 1 May 2008, www.youtube.com/results?search_query=+ray+bradbury+2001.
Prince, Martin et al. “No Health Without Mental Health”. The Lancet, vol 370, no. 9590, 2007, pp. 859-877. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(07)61238-0. Accessed 6 July 2021.
Theory: Brandt, Deborah. “Sponsors of Literacy,” pp. 244-266
Villaneuva, Victor. “Excerpt from Bootstraps: From an American Academic of Color,” pp. 272-285
Heron M. Deaths: Leading causes for 2017. In: National Vital Statistics Reports. 2019;68(6):1-77.
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Helped Rec: None