Ethan Brach

Marcum 1103-067
September 21, 2015

A Literacy Memoir
Literacy is a very common word in the society of today. Its definition varies from one
body of people to the next. The level of literacy of the person defining it will usually determine
to what extent it is defined. For example, an uneducated farmer may define it as simply having
the ability to read and write, whereas a professor could define it as understanding writings at
numerous different levels as well as communicating with an audience at those different levels
through writing. Just as every person has a different definition of literacy, everyone has taken a
different path to achieve it. Some individuals pathway to literacy may be pockmarked with trials
and setbacks, while others may have had it come naturally. My story is somewhat like that. I do
not say that arrogantly or condescendingly, I just simply have not struggled with achieving my
level of literacy.
Though this is not a narrative, I will give background and start at the earliest encounter I
had with becoming literate. My mother is a college graduate and studied English and education,
so as you can imagine she was eager to educate me in the things she knew so much about. From
my earliest memories she had those little magnetic letters stuck to the refrigerator door for me to
play with. She taught me the phonics of each one, and soon I could piece them together. That
helped put me on my way to reading. Now -speaking of reading- reading my first book was
obviously a very important step in my journey to literacy. The first book I read was Are you my
mother? By P.D. Eastman. I read it to my mother and my uncle at the age of two. Although that
may not be the most impressive reading selection, and I am positive some child genius out there

makes my accomplishment pale in comparison to theirs, I am still proud of it. It gave me the
jumpstart into reading that made me as knowledgeable as I am now.
Now, about being knowledgeable, I pride myself on knowing information on many
different topics. This is a necessity in todays society. I feel that to be successful and to get the
most out of life, one must be very well rounded and well versed in different subjects and topics
of study. This diversity of knowledge contributes to ones literacy. For example, in my own life, I
have read over fifty books concerning military engagements, tactics, equipment, and leaders.
These books span the gambit of human history. My favorite genre of these military books are
focused on American special operations forces from World War Two through the present day.
The love for these books was kick started by an assignment from my sixth grade teacher, Mrs.
Harrelson. We were assigned a biographical report and we were allowed to select the book. I
chose Eyes behind the Lines by Gary A. Linderer. The book opened the Pandoras Box that
would become my military obsession. It may be asked how this pertains to my personal literacy;
well, the military has its own dialect strewn with technical nonsensical jargon and some phrases
have absolutely no significant meaning to those who are not well versed in them. Therefore I
believe that by reading such books I have become a more literate person.
As I have tried to make clear above, reading has never been a struggle for me. I
genuinely enjoy doing it. The other aspect of literacy, however, is a different story. Writing is
one of those skills that is typically detested by the general population, but is one of the most
stressed and valued in the classroom or workplace. To be clear, I have no disdain for writing, nor
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have I an ignorant opinion of writing. It is just a very mentally taxing ordeal that I prefer to not
do. There are exceptions to that attitude though. I actually do enjoy writing about the things I
enjoy or feel very strongly about. For example if I was asked to write a paper concerning politics
and the current state of our nation I could churn out as much information as the assignment
required, and reversely I would balk at a paper assignment to explain a certain authors writing
style. All of that said, I have had occasions that writing has enhanced my literacy. Once again I
will reach back into Mrs Harrelsons sixth grade classroom. That was also the first time I had
been assigned a research paper. By my standards today, the paper was unpolished and rough, but
for my sixth grade self it was the culmination of weeks of work. Although I hated to do them, I
will admit that all of the research papers I was assigned throughout high school did actually
make me a more literate person. The one that sticks out most distinctly in my mind is the
research paper from my junior year of high school. That assignment was a part of the graduation
requirement for our county. It was also very strictly regulated. I believe these regulations forced
me to argue my points to a higher level as well as to convey my points in a more academic
fashion. I actually had a much easier time with the paper than the majority of my peers did. I
think this was because I had done research papers in the past. I went to a private school up until
the eleventh grade, so my education was slightly different from theirs.
I also believe I have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge, which has transmitted
into literacy, from more technical sources. Technical manuals have always been exceedingly
interesting for me to read (hence why I put myself into the mechanical engineering program). I

have always been that way, but one specific memory of reading a more technical book is on my
mind. A few years back (I will not give a specific year as I am not exactly certain of it), my
father gave me a good size blue book. It was a United States Navy Machinists mate first class
handbook. Inside that book there was information about almost any mechanical doohickey one
could imagine. Everything from air conditioning units to bolt torque specifications to water pipe
repairs and beyond. The major downside to reading this book was how it was written. It was a
professionals book, and I as a younger teen couldnt quite comprehend all of the uber technical,
confusing military jargon (which is far worse than regular technical jargon). The obscenely
overcomplicated nature of the book is why it is in this memoir now though. Had it not been so
utterly confusing at first I would not have had to look up the strange terms which it contained
and been so curious about figuring out what this thing was trying to tell me. Since then I have
read many different more technical books for my own enjoyment. Books on topics such as cars
and engines, or machining and welding, or even one time a limited slip differential gearbox
(exhilarating, yes I know).
The last major component to shape my personal literacy is with-out a doubt the most
important. I will also add that it is not chronologically the last thing with an effect on my
literacy. The book I am talking about has been read in bits and pieces for over six-thousand
years, but was not a complete book until around the third century Anno Domini. This book has
influenced almost every aspect of human history for around the last seventeen hundred years. It
was the reason Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press (which is arguably the single

greatest driving factor that dragged humanity out of the dark ages). Obviously I am talking about
the Bible. My mother is a devout Christian woman as well as an educator. The combination of
those two made it almost impossible for her to not teach it to me. After I became somewhat
literate and could read fairly well, she always preferred for me to read from the King James
Version. If you have ever read a King James Bible, you understand why I had to master reading
beforehand. That specific translation is the original, in its closest form to the original translations
in the year 1611. The English language of today is slightly *sarcasm* different than it was is
1611. Words have different meanings, the syntax and grammar is different. And everything has
some stupid old English suffix attached to it. BUT, that is what made it such a powerful tool for
literacy! Having to take an older text and make sense of it in modern terms is the quintessential
standard of literacy. If you dont agree with me on that, then why do high-school children still
have to read Shakespeare and King Arthur?
Literacy sponsors have been a major discussion topic from our readings in this class, so I
will point out a few sponsors I have been influenced by. Specifically talked about in Brandts
writing, but I will specifically mention the piece by Sherman Alexie where a parent has played a
huge role as a literacy sponsor. Mine was my mother instead of my father unlike Alexies
sponsor. As I have already mention, it was her who taught me phonics and how to read, but also
how to enjoy reading. She has had a personal library her entire adult life, so passing on a love of
reading was very important to her. I will say another literacy sponsor in my life would be Mr.
William A. Johnstone. He is a novelist that has written several series of books, but the ones I
became entranced with were the ashes series of novels. They are a politically charged set of
over 20 books, and to this day have shaped my views on different issues, and America as a
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whole. One literacy sponsor I do not particularly like to admit is my English teacher of four
years; Ms Sullivan. I despised English for four years due to her, BUT she actually did teach me
more grammar by the eleventh grade than most people learn two years into college.
And for that she has my gratitude, and I will recognize her as one of my primary literacy
sponsors.
Another main topic from discussions in class is concerning culture and literacy. This was
most notable in Shens writing. Although geographically we are worlds apart, there are some
similarities between Shen and I. We were both raised in poorer, rural ragions of our respective
nations, and we have both come to be educated individuals (well, Im trying to at least). My
culture is very family oriented, and almost stereotypically southern. By this I mean its the
everyone goes to work on Monday, church on Sunday, and the opening day of hunting season is
the busiest day in town, type of culture. I am not ashamed of this, I embrace it to the maximum.
Individuals with southern accents are usually thought of as the slow speaking dullards with a
drawl. So I love when people assume due to my accent that I am not as intelligent as they
perceive themselves to be.
I firmly believe that my personal literacy and everything that has contributed to build it
into what it is today makes me a better person, better academic, and a better citizen. This nation
needs men and women who can read for themselves, draw their own conclusions, and make
smart decisions based on these factors. This is the same ideology Malcom X stated in his writing,
and surprisingly I agree with him on certain things i.e. literacy. It is our responsibility as good
citizens to be able to read and communicate effectively, as well as to examine the content we are
reading. As a dear friend once said, Literacy is like a plane ticket. It allows one to traverse the
world without limits, boundaries, or borders. This quote exemplifies the integral role that
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literacy plays in allowing everyone to add and take part in very fabric of societys vast and
sundry quilt.