Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics Introduction by James Paul Gee:
Linguistics is more than grammar, contrary to belief. It takes many factors beyond writing. It involves speaking, actions, and more. It takes the idea of who you are and what you do, amplifying it. Overall, Linguistics is a social practice. In a “saying-doing” combination, you can say a sentence that is grammatically correct, but it would be considered “wrong” depending on the setting you are in. This can also be applied if an action doesn’t match the value of the environment a person is in, despite saying the “right” thing. Furthermore, every combination of saying, writing, doing, believing, and more can be categorized as Discourse. “Discourses are ways of being in the world, they are forms of life which integrate words, acts, values, beliefs, attitudes, and social identities as well as gestures, glances, body positions, and clothes”(Gee, 6). How does one achieve Discourse? By social practice, it is not a body of knowledge. Discourses can be identified in two categories. The first is Initial Discourse, or more known as Primary Discourse. It is the first used to make sense of the world and interact with others. It starts in early life, at home and in peer groups. Primary Discourse can be achieved by being a primary member in said groups. This can vary for each person based on culture, region, religions, and other factors. The second category is Secondary Discourse, when the interactions grow and spread outside of home, immediate, kin, and peer groups. Some examples could be schools, churches, and local stores. In Secondary Discourse, being fluent is not being perfect as it is up to the extent a person is allowed within those outer circles and the access to it. Furthermore, inside the Secondary Discourse category, there is Dominant Discourse and Non-dominant Discourse. In Dominant Discourse, it is the Secondary Discourse that is “mastered” at a particular time and place, which can bring potential social “goods”. These “goods” can be money and status. With Non-dominant Discourse, it is the Secondary Discourse that is “mastered” that can often bring solidarity instead. This occurs within a particular social network, but it does not necessarily bring wider status or social “goods”.
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