These readings highlighted great points within the writing realm. I have to be honest, though—did they blow my mind? No. Based on my expectation of what a threshold concept would do to my brain, I expected more. Nonetheless, these definitely got me thinking, and I walked away having learned something.
Let’s start with Brooke and Grabill’s Writing is a Technology Through Which Writers Create & Recreate Meaning. Putting writing in the framework of a technology for thinking and communication is such a great concept. It also makes perfect sense, and I ask myself, why didn’t I think of that? When we think about the mediums in which we write and how we write within those constraints, it becomes easy to understand how writing is a technology. As mentioned in the article, just like any other technology, writing has evolved, has its own tools, and has been incredibly impactful throughout history and in our day-to-day lives.
Moving on to John Duffy’s Writing Involves Making Ethical Choices, this is something I’ve never thought of before. As Duffy mentioned, most people don’t consider this, as most writers are simply writing and not thinking about the ethicality of their work. However, to a certain degree, writing is a matter of ethics. Anything we write with an audience in mind—or something for the world to read—we’re initiating a connection with others. Just as it happens with personal connections, an ethical exchange takes place. So yes, writing does involve ethical choices.
Next is Dylan Dreyer’s Words Get Their Meanings from Other Words. Honestly, this was a no-brainer. Of course, words get their meanings from other words! Words have power, and some words maintain that power on their own, but most words need the support of those around them. Also, words aren’t one-dimensional. Depending on the culture, setting, speaker, etc., words can shapeshift and acquire new meanings. Even with trends, words can find new meanings. Not only do other words help build context, but they bring the sentence to life. It’s a relational dynamic, just like humans. Being single is cool, and you can go through life just fine that way. However, it’s something special when you have someone to share it with, whether that be romantically, familially, as a friend, etc.
Let’s bring it home with Michael Carter’s The Idea of Expertise: An Exploration of Cognitive and Social Dimensions of Writing. After reading the other texts, this was honestly a jumpscare. No matter how much I read, long texts never get easier—especially if I feel the length doesn’t contribute to the understanding of the material. That’s how I felt with this one. The debate on generalized versus localized knowledge is purely opinion-based. Both have their pros and cons, so it’s hard to say which is better. Personally, I think generalized knowledge is more practical and useful. It’s nice to know a little bit about everything and then choose what you want to dive deeper into. First, I feel that not everything needs a deep dive. Second, I think generalized knowledge would be more helpful in the real world. For example, depending on the circles you mix in throughout life, it’s better to know a little about everything than a lot about a few things. Not only will this make you more flexible, but you’ll also become more well-rounded and even more confident or secure, since you’ll have the ability to contribute to a wide variety of conversations.
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