The Question of Learning to Read and Write

Literacy is highly valued by every member of a modern§society yet remains an elusive goal in most education§systems. Despite the large body of scientific§research directed towards solving the problem of§illiteracy in many nations it is the claim of this§book that unless the nature of learning to read and§write is itself studied philosophically and§historically no proper solution will be found.§This book leans on the work of three prominent§twentieth century philosophers - Heidegger,§Wittgenstein and Foucault - to reflect upon the§deeper issues involved. Their amalgamated insights§are used to discuss the phenomenon of illiteracy as§it is portrayed in a recent novel by Bernard Schlink,§The Reader. In this study of post-war Germany, the§way literacy is deeply entwined into our social§structures becomes clear, but more crucially we learn§this about illiteracy the highly destructive,§exaggerated, and excessive reaction to its occurrence§has no ready explanation. The discussion should be§of interest to literacy professionals and education§researchers seeking a wider context in which to§understand the phenomena of learning to read and write.