What you are not Learning
Let’s start by what you aren’t learning:
- You aren’t learning about science fiction novels and short stories or movies.
- You aren’t learning the answers to all the questions/concerns that science fiction novels and short stories or movies bring up.
- You aren’t learning formulas to apply to any situation to figure out THE meaning of a text.
- You aren’t learning what to think.
What you are Learning
Let’s move onto what you should be learning:
- You’re learning how to think.
- You’re learning that texts are much richer in meaning than just the words on the page.
- You’re learning about perspectives–not every perspective–but that there are multiple ones.
- You’re learning that one’s worldview filters what he or she believes–we pick and choose what to accentuate, refute, or ignore based on what we want to believe.
- You’re learning to ask questions rather than simply to expect answers.
One form of education is to memorize EVERYTHING and spit it back in some kind of assessment. Students do very well and very poorly under that model. Another approach is to present issues that require students to understand the structure of the way(s) knowledge is compiled for a discipline (see our epistemology discussion). Instead of telling you, “this is what to believe because I say it’s what to believe,” I’m trying to get you to recognize why someone might draw particular conclusions based on his or her own worldview–a worldview that’s been programmed by being a member of a particular culture. Our texts aren’t just entertainment or textbooks with specific information to extrapolate. They are vehicles to get us thinking about “big picture” ideas. They offer examples on ways to view the world, which often ask readers to step outside of their (usually limited) worldviews.
I try to use more familiar examples not to digress but to model a way of thinking about a topic. I typically use political examples because they seem to be the most prevalent. Of course, if you only vote for one party, you’re probably unlikely to care about the example, so you divert attention. Also, if you’re apathetic and don’t pay attention to politics, you’re probably not sure what’s going on and think the discussion is about politics when it’s about modeling an approach or way of thinking about a subject. I’m going to try to get you to think about reading between the lines by showing you two e-mails that we’ll analyze. We can read them as words on the page, but we can also read into them and make interpretations.
Let’s pause on that for a moment: read and interpret. Some claim these are different and, although you can find definitions that may show them to be different, in the world of English Studies, they are synonymous: no act of reading is devoid of interpretation. We’ll even say “I read that as…” synonymously with “I interpret that as…” Because readers have multiple filters and various worldviews, they never completely read the exact same words: reading and interpretation happen simultaneously. Consider this, when I say the word “home,” we all have different pictures or thoughts of what comes to mind. We don’t all think about the same kind of dwelling–apartment, house, mansion, etc. We might think of a place. I’ve lived away from where I grew up since 2002, but still refer to “visiting my parents” as “going home.” I have zero desire ever to move back to that area, but, in the depths of my mind, that is “home.” Therefore, when I hear someone else say “I’m going home,” I don’t immediately read/interpret that to mean going to a dwelling to feed the cats or take out the dog; instead, I have an interpretation of a place where they’re from. Of course, context plays a role in this. If it’s close to a holiday, my interpretation could be correct–they could be heading out of town to visit their family. If they’re leaving happy hour when they say this, it’s a safe assumption that they’re just going to their dwelling for the evening. In Communications Studies, we know that audience and purpose help us interpret messages a particular way. Even fully knowing the context doesn’t guarantee each of us will “read” the same words on the page, but it does help to limit interpretation.
E-mail #1: Reading for audience
E-mail #2: Reading for purpose
The E-mail
To: Aaron
From: Old Friend
Date: A Couple Years Ago
Subject: What’s up
Aaron,
I’ve been having a blast down here in Florida. I’m about to finish my MA in Public Relations at [a Florida University]. I can’t wait to get into the corporate world and make tons of money. I’ve been dating some great guys lately. Currently, I’m with this dentist, but I dated a couple engineers and lawyers over the past year. Things are good.
Well, I gotta run. Let me know what it’s like up there in your neck of the woods.
Take care,
Old Friend
The Other E-mail
Aaron,
I’ve been having a blast down here in Florida. I’m about to finish my MA in Public Relations at [a Florida University]. I can’t wait to get into the corporate world and make tons of money. I’ve been dating some great guys lately. Currently, I’m with this dentist, but I dated a couple engineers and lawyers over the past year. Things are good.
Well, I gotta run. Let me know what it’s like up there in your neck of the woods.
Take care,
Ex-Girlfriend