Literacy as Pattern of Alphabet and Words - Essay Example

Keng-Hao Ku English Composition 1000 C Fujiwara 2009 Literacy Narrative If I defined literacy in my own words it would be anything writtendown in a recognized pattern of alphabet and words. Mandarin, English, Spanish, French, and many other languages have their own words written in different manners. English, Spanish, and French have the same alphabet, but different words represent the same thing. Even words used for the same object are translated differently into another language. This is my problem in translating English into my native language and my native language into English. At first I find myself translating the English written word into Mandarin, but the longer I read English, the need to translate was not as frequent. I can read English without having to translate in my head to my native language today. Once I became literate in English, literacy for me has become two similar, but separate ideas. The first meaning of literacy for me is Mandarin. This is the language I read, wrote, and spoke in Taiwan. Mandarin has a different alphabet and phonetic style than English. I still use a dictionary that translates Mandarin to English. My goal is to be literate in English, but in order to do this I cannot forget my Mandarin literacy. I must confess that to obtain better grades my senior year, I would translate back and forth between Mandarin and English. An example would be in my English class, I would be assigned books to read. I would read the books in Mandarin, then give my answers in English. One example would be The Great Gatsby. I ordered a copy in Mandarin. This is a practice that helped boost my grades. Literacy for me in Mandarin is being able to read stories, signs, magazines, and other literature sources with no difficulty. English stories, signs, magazines, and other literature are more difficult for me. I can read and write in English, but not on the level of Mandarin. This lack of literacy in the English language can be scary, especially in an unfamiliar environment. Traveling to a different neighborhood, or taking a vacation can be very stressful for someone that does not have a complete grasp of the English language. I can read, but understanding what I read can be the problem. This is especially true when reading states, signs, and other names. There is no translation for New Jersey in Mandarin. When I look up names of places, streets, and other words like these, my Mandarin dictionary cannot help. The more I read English, the more I learn. It only becomes confusing in unfamiliar situations, which I try to avoid. If I was going to read for pleasure, I would choose Mandarin. I order these books online. One can order everything from Harry Potter to The Great Gatsby in Mandarin. However, I feel that something gets lost in the translation. An example would be Harry Potter. I read the series first in Mandarin, then read them in English. There were subtle differences. These differences were sentence structure, terms, and combined thoughts in Mandarin, whereas in English two sentences would be written. Time is different in Mandarin and English. Verbs do not reflect time in Mandarin, a time is given by using the word for yesterday or today. Translations of a book, poem, magazine, or other written works are not as good as when written in the native language. When I read in Mandarin, I prefer to read Mandarin literature. My native language seems to be a better piece of literature, that I more easily understand. My experiences with literacy make me think that literacy is a culture. Different cultures use different alphabets and different sentence structures. In Taiwan, literature has different subjects. The settings are in Taiwan, China, and even Japan. The people in the stories, poems, or magazine are from Taiwan. The culture of Taiwan is present through literacy. Even the schools are different than the ones here. In the United States everyone gets to go to high school, however in Taiwan it must be earned. Everything written in Taiwan culture is in Mandarin. Street signs, directions, prices, labels, and many other things are in Mandarin. The Mandarin language is part of the Taiwan culture. English is part of the United States culture. The books, movies, and other forms of entertainment are part of the English literacy. Not only books, magazines, or other literature is written in English. Signs, labels, and everywhere I look are English words. The grocery store is an example of words I see. Pictures help me recognize brands and words, but not every label has pictures. I must read in order to follow the rules in the United States. Traffic signs, assignments from this class, and other English words help me in the United States culture. The English culture is part of the United States. There are more individuals like myself that fit into two different literacy cultures. I can read Mandarin and English. If I go to Taiwan or China, I can read, write, and communicate with the other individuals in those countries. I can also come to cities in the United States and read, write, and communicate with American citizens. I belong to a third literacy culture. The bilingual and multilingual literacy culture is made up of individuals that can appreciate the different literacy of two or more cultures. An individual literate in more than one language can move within the cultures, like going to different parts of the world more easily. Since learning English, I would feel more comfortable going to other English speaking countries. I would be comfortable with the signs, magazines, and labels. This means that the literacy cultures for a bilingual or multilingual make travel to different regions of the world easier. I think that people that cannot read must feel the same as I felt when I came to the United States. They do not understand simple words. Fear must be felt by these people. I have feared the unknown in the past. Not understanding English was one of the greatest fears. I was not only different from everyone, I could not understand how to be like them. The people that were gesturing toward me in Arizona when I first came to the United States were not mocking me. I have since learned that people from the United States are curious about different cultures. However, at the time I did not know this, so my fear and anxiety made me sick with fear. The only way this fear subsided was with my better understanding of speaking, reading, and writing of English. Literacy is the only way to make the illiterate more comfortable with their surroundings. Literacy is a tool for leaning. Just like books, pencils, and paper are tools to learn, the ability to read is a tool to gain knowledge. Book knowledge is important because one individual does not know everything. Individual teachers could not teach a course without literary tools like books. Without literacy, I would never have learned English. The ability to look in a Mandarin dictionary helped me understand English better. The English I learned helped me study in a United States classroom. The English I learned in high school assisted me in going to college. Without literacy in English, I would not be here today. I refuse to feel fear because of illiteracy. The tool of literacy in English will be used by me for the rest of my life. I still cannot read or write English like someone native to the United States. My English is improving. I am not illiterate, but not as literate as I want to be. I can function in my daily life and at college, but I want to understand English enough to pass as a native. Reading, writing, and speaking English as a second language is not enough for me. I want to possess the English language like someone born in the United States. Being a foreigner with an accent is not an option for me. That is my literacy goal. When I came to the United States, I did not appreciate Mandarin or English. I never thought about literacy. Now that I have had the opportunity to think literacy over, I realize how valuable the whole concept can be. I am learning to fit into the English culture through literacy. At first I thought speaking English would help me fit in, but learning to be literate in English has helped me more. Read More