Literacy is...

Literacy, as I have come to understand it, is the ability to read, process what a text is saying, and comprehend the meaning of the words on the page. The more literate one is, the more capable they are of understanding the deeper messages in the words chosen by the writer. It is a form of communication in which a reader may analyze a given text and derive the same or perhaps even another meaning than that which the author originally intended. It is the ability to process these meanings that forms the depth of one’s literacy. A person that can read is not necessarily a literate person. If they cannot understand the message behind what they are reading, they are missing the point entirely. Literacy involves an interaction with the text that is more than just a recital of words; it is the ideas those words are intending to provoke.
A literary person is one who is actually moved by a text. For example, someone who can recall every line in a story and explain all of its technical aspects, but has never actually been emotionally moved by it, is not a literary person. Literacy is that emotional experience that is necessary to truly understand works of writing. It is a connection between the author and the reader that requires a comprehension on both sides. An author cannot expect literacy from all of their readers; different writing styles may not work for certain readers and therefore, the message that the author meant to convey may be lost in translation.
I have come to find that one can be literate in certain fields, and yet, though they can still read the material of other fields, they are completely illiterate in regards to the messages they could have found there. In my scholastic experiences, I must say there have been times in which I would reflect that I was illiterate in certain subjects. Since works of fiction seem to be the most prominent genre, it seems only natural that those are the works which spring readily to mind. In high school, my English teacher had us read “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck. To this day I still consider myself illiterate in this work. Despite the deeper meanings and lessons the teacher tried to explain to us, I could not get past the fact that I did not like the work. The writing style was boring to me and I have discovered I am in no way a fan of any of Steinbeck’s works that I have since been introduced to. My level of literacy does not encompass his writing style. There are, however, many other texts that have moved me to re-examine aspects of the world in a new light. Their messages were conveyed with startling clarity and my level of literacy has made it possible to understand how such things apply to more than just the tale being presented. The most recent example I can recall is reading Don DeLillo’s short story, “Videotape.” The tale documents an incident in which a young girl unintentionally records the highway murder of the driver in the car behind her. Though the focus is on the incident, there are many other underlying messages that relate to the almost constant presence of recording devices in our daily lives now. Literacy is what has allowed me to take in this message and have its ramifications stay with me, allowing me to see the world with a new perspective.