As you know, I gave my presentation on the term ‘aliteracy,’ and ever since I started my research for the project I’ve been thinking a lot about the causes and implications of not using our reading skills (by the way, for the purposes of my project and this post, I’m going to be discussing only the reading aspect of literacy, but as we know, being literate also involves being able to write and do other things).
To refresh your memory, someone who is literate is able to read, someone who is illiterate is not able to read, but someone who is aliterate is able to read, but chooses not to for whatever reason.
Before I started my research, I had thought of reading as something that you either liked or didn’t, which is to say, I assumed the desire to read/ love of reading is inborn. I have always enjoyed reading – as a child, I tore through books at a rapid pace, devouring any book I could get my hands on. My reading level was unusually high at an early age, which my parents attributed to natural inclination towards words and writing. My younger brother, on the other hand, was completely uninterested in books. He read, but only because my parents forced him to. Once he got old enough to choose for himself, he stopped reading altogether unless it was strictly for scholastic purposes, and even then he despised it. I assumed that he and I represented the two kinds of readers in the world: the avid and the begrudging.
As it turns out, I was completely wrong. Love of reading may be somewhat inherent, but it depends largely on the way we are socialized. I probably developed a passion for reading because my parents made it seem like a wonderful activity, my teachers and friends were supportive, and I was able to find books that I liked since I had an excellent public library not far from my home. I had a good attitude towards books and nearly unlimited access to them.
I wonder if my brother could have developed a love of reading if my parents hadn’t forced him to or if he found a series that suited his tastes. I recall his friends being similarly begrudging towards reading, so maybe that had something to do with it, too.
I think that our parents’ influences and how we are socialized plays a HUGE role in whether one chooses to be aliterate or not. I also think that while books cover all subject matters, an interest in reading really depends on the person’s own interests. For example, I love reading, but my brother is less interested, due to the fact that he enjoys math and science much more. For him, when choosing a career, he wants to avoid writing and reading as much as he can, whereas I absolutely love it. Keep in mind that we were raised in the same household, with the same influence of our parents. I think while literacy sponsors play a role, so does personal interest.