Members:

SONTILLANOSA, JULIA SELAH B.

RIVERA, MICHELLE FLORENCE U.

NANTA, GENEVIEVE B.

Group 7: Ciencia, Ladoc, Navarro, Primalion

Members:

• Banogon, Tharrah Anne
• Convocar, Belle
• Lumuthang, Karl Donrey
• Melendres, Xyra Mae

Group 1:

Santiago, Monteclaro, Deocampo, Guadana, Paguntalan

“Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate and to humble.” – Yehuda Berg

Language has played a significant role in shaping one’s culture and society. It’s not simply an instrument of communication, but of development and cultivation.

We can better understand the link between language and societal growth by first familiarizing ourselves with two distinct linguistic cultures identified by “Orality and Literacy” author Walter J. Ong – the primary oral and the literate. The latter is rooted from the former which explains their similarities in terms of incorporating the use of mnemonics, semantic priming, and memorization in the construction of their lingual system. Aside from that, both have established traditions by transforming their language into art forms to be passed down.

Their differences are more evident. Cognitively, primary oral cultures are more situational, relating abstract concepts to tangible objects present in their daily life while literate cultures are able to comprehend complex reasoning. This could be attributed to the fact that the writing system is a key part in the convergence, preservation, and enlightenment of knowledge – thanks to books, journals, etc. Having documentation, people can compare past and present and contemplate about the future. However, without these records, it could result to people dwelling more in the now, with no regards for yesterday.

Ong also introduces the concept of intersubjectivity  – a matter of shared understanding common during human conversations. Here, diversity is present but mutual relations still exist between the parties communicating. In contrast, the media model creates static roles for the sender and the receiver, like a one-way telephone. This lack of back-and-forth doesn’t enable spontaneity and in-depth discussions beneficial to all communicating participants.

Conformity to this model, as Ong notes, is due to chirographic conditioning. This conditioning subverts speaking as performative and emphasizes writing. However, the author can only send messages while the readers cannot respond – there is no immediate feedback that could influence the flow of the messages. Nonetheless, with proper deliberation, it isn’t impossible to establish a connection between author and reader. ◆

“Understanding Orality and Literacy” Written by :  Alethea Van Loren Estilo  | Evelio Caesar Lontok  | Rexeil Molina | Lyn Alexandria Novilla

(Pictures used have been credited to their respective sources.)

Bibliography

Ong, W. J. (2002). Orality and literacy. London: Routledge. Retrieved from
https://content.taylorfrancis.com/books/download?dac=C2012-0-03018-3&isbn=9781136243738&format=googlePreviewPdf
Danziger, K. (2009). Marking the mind: A history of memory. New York, NY, US: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from
http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2008-14739-000
McNamara, T. (2006). Semantic Priming. New York: Psychology Press. Retrieved from
https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135432553
jkendell (2012,September 30).Orality and Literacy – In what Ways Are oral and Literate Cultures Similar?. Retrieved from
https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540sept12/2012/09/30/1150/

      Communication is one of the key components of 21st century learning, its dynamics involves oral and written cultures. The advancement on human knowledge helps in comparing and differentiating orality and literacy. These cultures are still practiced because of its permanence in conveying and disseminating ideas, messages, knowledge, etc. This indicates that both exhibit conservatism by the judgment that they have essentially valuable objects, objects that is thought to transcend the everyday uses of language.

         On the differences, literature requires materials to be able to produce content while orality requires none but our verbal capacity. Speakers and listeners tend to be more involved than writers and readers, written language is said to convey the detachment of the communicator through written literary structures. Primary oral culture has specific context compared to literary culture wherein there has been differences due to dictionaries that brings various meaning to a word that brought many linguistic discrepancies.     

     The continuous discussion between its difference is an additive process, though orality came first and existed on its own, the development of literary culture made communication better and helped in the development of different principles through time. 

The intersubjectivity of orality is characterized by a complex component of oral mode of expression and communication, and such component is particularly embodied in the social relationship, based on speaking and hearing interactions. Utilization of media is in plethora for the last centuries and is totally dominated by the sense of closure, slowly erasing the being of oral context. It is only orality that makes communication more genuine than utilization of media. 

The media model of communication exhibits chirographic conditioning by distorting the core and eradicating the essence of communication. Media disregards the structure of how to properly convey a message by not expecting any response, the reason behind this is the lack of any specific audience that the sender is aiming to connect with. The audience keeps on taking what is displayed before them. This practice creates a shift in people’s mentality to favor literacy more than orality, thus the interplay of media, oral culture is losing its footing.

References:

Ong, Walter J. (1982). Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. New York:                     Routledge.

Akinnaso, F. N. (1985). On the Similarities Between Spoken and Written Language.                          Language and Speech. 28(4): 323–359.

New Learning: Ong on the Differences between Orality and Literacy. (2018, August 22).                    Retrieved from New Learning Online:                                                                                                http://newlearningonline.com/literacies/chapter-1/ong-on-the-differences-between-orality-and-literacy

Created by:

Tharrah Anne Banogon                      Xyra Mae Melendres

Belle  Concovar                                    Karl Donrey Lumuthang