Blog #5

The two class discussions and activities complimented each other very well. Monday during class we discussed an article by Flower and Hayes called: “A Cognitive Process Theory of Writing”, and Wednesday in class we did an activity where we created our own personal literacy time lines. These two discussions may not seem like they relate all that much, but they certainly did to me.

Flower and Hays’ article depicts a figure, or drawing, of the writing process. The different ideas, steps, and stages that each and every writer is thought to go through with each and every piece of writing. The graph is very linear and restricts a lot of back-to-back or diagonal movements. After looking at the graph and studying the different steps and process that according to the authors I am going through right now I found myself rather confused and perplexed at the process and the theory. I did not, and do not, believe it at all. I did realize that it is important for us to study this figure because I felt that it revealed the absurdity of attempting to label and explain the complicated writing process in very all-inclusive terms. Studying this graph proved the absurdity of trying to label and define the writing process.

Wednesday’s activity was creating a timeline that started at out birth and ended at present day and we were supposed to go through and label when we thought we developed different reading and writing literacies. Once we completed this we went through and in a different color ink we labeled when we developed different types of literacies such as cultural, music, foreign languages, religious, and body communication. This activity revealed to me how many differences we all have when it comes to literacies; what has influenced our literacies, what has influenced our background, and all in all what has helped create who we are now.

Looking back on Monday’s discussing after Wednesday’s activity I was struck at how full circle it all seemed to me. By looking at and understanding all of the different backgrounds that people have, all of the different literacies they know, and all of the different pieces of life that have brought them to where they are today further revealed to me the absurdity of Flower and Hays’ figure. With all of the different backgrounds and literacies that people have it is absolutely impossible for people to follow the same writing process. There is no way that one process can fit the needs of all of the writers with all of their different backgrounds and influences.