Ok, so now that the semester is over, it is time to recap and reflect. When I think of the question, "What is literacy?," I hesitate to even begin to answer anymore. It is as the cliche goes: the more you know, the more you realize how much you don't know. That is now how I feel about literacy. Learning all that I did this semester about computer navigation, rhetorical decision-making within the visual arena (Does it make me a nerd that every time I see, hear, or speak that word, I can only think of the Hunger Games arena??), applications manipulation, etc. has only made me feel more "ignorant" in the sense that, yet again, I learn of more and more that is evolving out there in the big world of technology that has literally transformed our world and with it, our naive understandings of literacy, genres, literary analysis, authorship...I could go on and on, but I think my point is clear. However, my resolve to learn all that I can is not defeated; if anything, I desire knowledge more at the end of each semester.
I pulled out each of our texts this evening to "get re-inspired" about the knowledge gleaned from within their pages.The Palmquist text was probably my favorite because of the direct nature of the text when it comes to how-to skills, my weakness and insecurity when it comes to technology. I appreciate how the author not only laid out the how-to's, but offered up rhetorical suggestions as well. This text taught me that you have to think like a "reader/viewer" in order to be an effective author (is that term still current??). To be literate is to be able to read, analyze, absorb, and engage with a text as not only a reader, but as an author from the perspective of a reader/viewer...if that makes sense. It isn't always about what the author is trying to convey so much as it is about making meaning for the reader (Roland Barthes coming out in me a little bit). The author has, after all, become less than the backdrop for the text as we used to assume. The author and reader are one in the same many times, especially when it comes to multimodal and electronic texts. That concept alone pretty much turns our "old school" definition of literacy on its head.
Bolter...ol' good old Bolter. I will admit that I was quite the skeptic for the duration of his first chapter or two...or maybe more; however, there is much to learned from taking a look back at a scholar's perspective into the future...or where we just were and currently are (I know...it's like a weird time warp/travel-like thing). Some of his thoughts I feel still resonate with our current situation, at least within the Academy (they...I know the infamous "they"...anyway, "they say" that the Academy typically lags about ten years behind the current cultural changes). For example, he states that "Both as authors and as readers, we still regard books and journals as the place to locate out most prestigious texts" (Bolter 3). I feel confident that most scholars vitae would boast their published books, book chapters, and journal articles before they would list their online publications. He further states that "In this late age of print, the two technologies, print and electronic writing still need each other" (Bolter 46). I completely agree with this statement and feel that literacy demands a mix of the two at times. We still seem to approach most electronic texts with a compare/contrast approach which proves that the two are interdependent in a way. We don't (for the most part) teach kindergarteners to read via Kindle; they still use the cute little paper books with the large print.
The last major text, the sourcebook, is a valuable collection. Stroupe has a compelling opening chapter on the visualization of English in which he quotes one scholar as claiming that "'People will not stop using print any more than they stopped talking when they became literate. But they will use it differently--will speak and write differently within the frame of electronics'" (Stroupe 24). That is what the late age of print is all about, an exploration on both the part of the reader and the author to learn to use resources differently to ultimately expand literacy to infinite bounds. I believe that we will never truly grasp the concept of literacy again. It is evolving at such a rapid rate that our definitions and understandings are obsolete nearly as soon as we come upon them...well, maybe not obsolete but rather incomplete. That is why this time, this late age of print, is so exciting! We are a part of a movement, a cultural revolution!
Monday, April 16, 2012
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Reflection on Multimodal Narrative
While iMovie was not quite a brand new application for me for this project, it still required quite a bit of searching and re-familiarizing as I ventured into the narrative. The topic seemed to demand more thought as well as research on the front end, which is the reverse of my initial reaction to the two multimodal projects. It took more research to find “just the right” song that I wanted to narrate and then at least twice the amount of time searching for images and video clips. Once I got the narrative in my head, it was very hard for me to picture it any other way, but when the images in my head were not available, new directions became necessary despite my reluctant nature to yield. This is probably why it took me so long to track down all of the “stuff” necessary to create my narrative.
As far as technical skills go, I had to do much more manipulation of video clips for this project. I of course had to crop each one down to the applicable and appropriate segments of video that I needed and then also had to go in and slow video clips down to just the right speed so that the clip would align with the words of the song. I did a lot more with speed control throughout the making of the narrative and also had to save at least twice as many images and videos as I did for the essay. The zoom focus (I believe it is called Ken something…that shows my ineptness with Mac applications) for each image required some tweeting to end on the focal point that aligned with what I felt the focus of the narrative song was at that point. Volume ducking was also another technical skill that I used with each video clip.
In terms of rhetorical decisions, I tried to decide what the author was trying to convey within his song because I wanted to create a narrative that would do justice to his song creation. I wanted to find all blond girls to hopefully look like it could be the same girl throughout and also because blond seems to be the stereotype for the classical Cinderella stories that we are familiar with. I wanted it to be a narrative that was relatable. I also wanted the end to stick with the viewer and make an impact. I was not pleased with the final clock clip as it does not actually strike midnight; it stops just short. I wanted that to be a moment of impact, the moment that the whole narrative built up to, the moment when the clock strikes twelve and I could freeze the frame for just a moment to leave the viewer hanging and asking, “So what happens in this narrative when the clock strikes twelve??” But, no project can be the perfect portrayal of our minds’ creations, so while I do not feel that I “nailed it,” I am satisfied with the outcome.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
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