RWS 1301 Democratic Reading Project
I've been concerned - always but especially as of late - with silence. The silencing of complex language practices across different cultures. The silencing of writers, artists, history in our state and more broadly, diligently in the nation. The flattening of language by algorithms. The destruction of trust in academia and science. What happens when voices, critical thinking, and rhetorical abilities are systematically stripped away and censored?
Because of this, I want to talk about reading.
One way we can break beyond the silence is through developing our own reading and writing praxes. RWS 1301 is a writing class. We'll learn about the rhetorical situation and how we can respond. We'll explore our literacy histories and narratives and how they shape us into unique, dynamic, and capable individuals. We'll explore genres of both written and visual rhetoric and how they can connect us to different audiences. And we'll develop research capabilities that will help us write complex papers, make smart decisions, and address bias, mis/disinformation, and AI hallucinations.
But through this initiative, what I'm calling the RWS 1301 Democratic Reading Project, we'll also refine our reading praxes, meaningfully engaging with texts, reading as science, and reading as both rereading and revision - as well as a necessary and fundamental step to developing our craft and voice as writers. Reading is fundamental to building democracy, challenging censorship, and addressing the needs of our communities. This isn't one assignment or one reading but instead an ongoing commitment as we work our way through the course content of RWS 1301 and as we navigate the unprecedented times within which we live.
Why Democratic Reading?
Reading has many benefits. I'm sure you've grown up hearing all about them. And yet, we're seeing unprecedented declines in reading rates due to complex issues like AI, book bans, standardized testing, and the rise of our technology- and media-driven world. However, reading transforms us into democratic individuals. It makes us more understanding of people who are different from us, it introduces us to new possibilities, and it allows us to better recognize injustices in our communities and beyond. It is these reasons that using reading to see the world through new lenses and to become more democratically oriented will be the emphasis of this project.
Reading Isn't Biological
I know what you're thinking. We always hear about the cognitive benefits of reading, but actually, human brains weren't originally wired to read the way society does now. In fact, as reading became more mainstream across the globe, our brains began to rewire themselves - and we flourished for it!
In our first reading, Maryanne Wolf's The Deep Reading Brain and the Good Life, she writes,
Consider a simple insight with large implications: Human beings were never born to read. Reading or written language is a cultural invention that necessitated totally new connections among structures in the human brain underlying language, perception, cognition, and, over time, our emotions. The reading brain circuit emerged, which became a vehicle like no other for ever more elaborated connections, which gave literate humans an evolving platform for the development of new thought. Reading represents one of the most important epigenetic breakthroughs in the history of the species; our very history was made possible by it. (Wolf, paragraph one)
So what happens now when deep reading, frequent reading, important reading are all on the decline? Reading may not be biological, but it is one of the best changes we made to our socio-cognitive selves. We'll discuss how our reading habits have changed in the rise of digital technologies and what that means for us socially, politically, and beyond.
Reading as Fundamental to Social Change
Over the millennia, reading has been one of the most important skills humans developed. Whole societies transformed in light of stronger reading praxes. This is because humans had the ability to better communicate, to better understand, to better question and interrogate, to better fight for human rights and challenge the status quo. To preface our conversations, I'd like to share some examples from history in which reading changed whole societies, was fought for, or because of a lack of literacy skills, was used as a form of control against communities.
Lives and Literacy in Ancient Egypt - The Harry Ransom Center, UT Austin
Writing and literacy was central to life in Greco-Roman Egypt. While we may think of hieroglyphs when we think of writing in Egypt, this time period was many years after, following the conquest of Alexander the Great and influence of the Roman-Byzantine empire. Many people in power spoke Greek while those living in rural regions still spoke the ancient Egyptian language. As the image shows, while writing and literacy were paramount to everyday life, many people were illiterate or semiliterate, meaning they had very little power in determining the direction of their lives, challenging social norms, and meaningfully engaging in important aspects of their lives. Many relied on scribes to help them write and interpret important documents, like marriage licenses, religious materials, and land disputes. As the exhibitionist of this display writes, "Papyri like this one show us individuals trying to assert rights within a system they ultimately did not control." It wasn't until literacy increased that more power was returned to the people.
A Fight Against Book Bans - Prague, Czech Republic
At the height of communism in many parts of Europe, including the Soviet Union, books were frequently banned and burned, especially those challenging fascism. One of the most banned books in the union at that time was 1984 by George Orwell. If you have not read it (everyone needs to read it at least once in their lives!), 1984 introduced the world to the now infamous Big Brother, a shadowy figure representative of the government as a whole that sees all in the totalitarian world of Oceania. Any thinking, any dissidence, anything that goes against the control of the politicians in this world is severely punished - including love, individuality, and truth. It's an important read and an example of how people can both be controlled and also have the ability to challenge and tear down totalitarian, authoritarian, fascist regimes, which is why it's frequently banned. Prague, a rich literary, artistic city and the capital of the Czech Republic, fell under totalitarian control first during Nazi occupation during World War II and secondly at the height of the communist regime, which began a few years after the war and lasted until 1989. During this time, 1984 and numerous other books were banned, literacy rates declined, and intellectual freedom was monitored and controlled. In addition, more than 400 writers were prohibited from creating or distributing their work for going against the regime with their words. However, this didn't stop underground networks from forming to challenge these political enforcements, including underground publishing rings that reproduced banned books to circulate and inform fellow dissidents, also known in Czech as Samizdat. Members of these secret networks managed to obtain copies of books like 1984 and reproduced them, typing or handwriting the pages word-for-word, to distribute them to their communities. As you can see in the pictures above, which I took at the Libri Prohibiti in Prague, they got creative with it, binding the books with recycled jeans, creating pocket-sized copies that could be easily hidden, and even turning it into an artistic endeavor by sewing flowers onto the covers and putting their illustration skills to the test. This is a testament to the importance of reading and writing all the time but especially during times of governmental control and censorship.
Rereading and Revision
Reading is also an important component of revision. As we work on our writing in this class, we'll find ourselves reading and rereading our work and the work of others. Just like revision is an important part of the writing process, rereading is an important step in developing a strong reading praxis. Both reading and writing don't always begin off perfectly. It's okay to go back and start again.
Reading Goals
Through this project, I hope you walk away with:
A deeper understanding of the importance of reading as a democratic tool in addition to being highly beneficial for our brains and, of course, fun;
A stronger connection to reading through the materials we'll read together in class and beyond;
A meaningful ability to engage with reading as a form of revision, including the act of rereading.
Reading Praxis Across Modules 1-5
Module One: Taking Inventory
In this module, we ask ourselves what it means to be an author and how our past experiences have or have not equipped us to explore our own authorial goals and intent. We will emphasize reading, writing, and thinking and approaching rhetorical situations from a place of curiosity.
Module One Democratic Reading Project Readings and Activities
Module Two: Autoethnographic Study of Self & Language Experiences
Module Two provides us the tools and space to conduct autoethnographic study of our past language experiences, in school and beyond. We'll find our strengths through this practice while continuing to unlearn misconceptions about reading and writing we may have gathered along the way.
Module Two Democratic Reading Project Readings and Activities
Module Three: Remixing the Self Study (Genre and Audience)
In Module Three, we remix the self study we conduct in Module Two to address new audiences and different genres. This module will see us diving into different genres and seeing how the authors of these genres appeal to audiences - it is very fun!
Module Three Democratic Reading Project Readings and Activities
Reading One: The Hispanic Invasion of Texas and other poems by UTEP alumna and poet Maria Esquinca.
Reading Two: Excerpt from the Vanishing of Will Byers (Stranger Things Season One, Episode One)
Activity: After reading the script together, we will watch a clip of the table read between the actors to see how the words first came to life. We will then return to the script together to discuss how the Duffer brothers are attempting to connect to their audiences and using the genre of a streaming show to do so. We'll also briefly look at the edits/feedback added throughout the process.
Module Four: Social Issue Investigation
In Module Four, we will put our research skills to the test. You will choose a social issue - something near and dear to your or something you'd like to learn more about - and create a research guide to support or argue against the topic at hand. Through the Project, we will engage with readings to examine how authors meaningfully utilize research in their work.
Module Four Democratic Reading Project Readings and Activities
Module Five: Visual Argument
In this module, we'll explore the different ways we can use visual rhetoric to tell a story and make an argument. Our last module will culminate with a visual project arguing for or against your social issue topic from Module Four. That being said, our one reading for this module will be a comic strip arguing against the use of AI in the arts based on one artist's experience using it in the corporate world.
Module Five Democratic Reading Project Reading and Activity
Class Discussion Space
Please click on the Leaf (Kraa's term for pages) below associated with your CRN number and/or class date and time. These are password-protected spaces where we will write together about the readings we discuss. You do not need to create an account for this and are welcome to remain anonymous. However, please keep this a safe space for all. While debate is healthy, any intolerant, derogatory, or harmful language will not be tolerated.
Share Your Thoughts!
Have thoughts about this project as a whole? Drop them below. I'm excited to see what you think.
A Note About Data and Privacy
Most activity within the Kraa pages for this project will be conducted using free anonymous posting opportunities. You do not have to create an account (though it is free and you're definitely free to) and are never expected to give away information, such as contact information, in order to participate. Please let me know if you have any questions about this!
A Note About Deserts
You may be wondering why the sections of this page are divided by pictures of the desert. Just like deserts, which are rich with wildlife and complex ecosystems but are often misunderstood to be empty spaces, there are many misconceptions about reading, especially in today's political and AI-driven climate. I found them to be a suitable allegory for this project.
