Original 1:
William’s pattern of identity shifts is not simply limited to loss. It can be seen throughout many narratives where students endure some sort of negative experience, such as a disability or feeling as though they do not belong. His pattern can often be seen within outsider narratives, which Alexander describes as, “[readers and writers feeling as though] they did not fit in with the literate community (as others do). Outsiders thus then occupy a ‘third-space’ . . . where they remain in limbo, wondering where their place is in the world” (622). An outsider often feels apart and separated from the world, which can result in their disinterest in reading or writing. It can be frustrating and embarrassing for an outsider to attempt to catch back up to their peers, leading to a sense of loneliness. A strong example of this can be seen in Kenny Goddu’s “The Roller Coaster of my Life”. He talks about how he had several disabilities making it extremely difficult for him to learn to read and write. A prominent memory that stands out to him is when he, “remember[s] there was this one point in kindergarten: that the whole class would gather around in a circle and spell and read words out loud. [He] remember[s] being called on once and not being able to read or spell any words” (Goddu Paragraph 1). Kenny did not fit in with the rest of the students who were already learning to read and write. His many disabilities, making it difficult for him to learn to read and write like the others in his class, left him feeling embarrassed and ashamed that he was so far behind. He felt separate from them, and alone, giving him the outsider identity. By the end of the narrative Kenny switches schools in the third grade, gains an IEP, and starts to get help with his literacy issues. He explains how proud he was of himself when he read his first book. The end of this narrative is extremely upbeat, and uplifting. A shift away from an outsider identity is evident; Kenny moves into a success identity to finish off his narrative. Alexander describes the success identity as someone who is “improving [their] reading and writing skills; invokes optimistic and future-looking rhetoric views; views literacy as utilitarian and useful, a means to economic, cultural, social, and political success” (615). With the help of new teachers and a new school, Kenny is able to further his literacy skills, resulting in success. Despite feeling apart from other students, he was able to overcome his many disabilities and embarrassment to succeed in literacy, and eventually made his way to college (something he thought he would never be able to do). This literacy narrative follows exactly to William’s identity shift pattern. Kenny was able to overcome his feeling of being on the outside, and feeling separated from other students in order to become successful in literacy.
Revised 1:
William’s pattern of identity shifts is not simply limited to loss. It can be seen throughout many narratives where students endure some sort of negative experience, such as a disability or feeling as though they do not belong. His pattern is often supported in outsider narratives, which Alexander describes as, “[readers and writers feeling as though] they did not fit in with the literate community (as others do). Outsiders thus then occupy a ‘third-space’ . . . where they remain in limbo, wondering where their place is in the world” (622). An outsider often feels apart and separated from the world, which can result in their disinterest in reading or writing. It can be frustrating and embarrassing for an outsider to attempt to catch back up to their peers, leading to a sense of loneliness. A strong example of this can be seen in Kenny Goddu’s “The Roller Coaster of my Life”. He talks about how he had several disabilities making it extremely difficult for him to learn to read and write. A prominent memory that stands out to him is when he “remember[s] there was this one point in kindergarten: that the whole class would gather around in a circle and spell and read words out loud. [He] remember[s] being called on once and not being able to read or spell any words” (Goddu Paragraph 1). His inability to read and write like the others in his class left him feeling embarrassed and ashamed that he was so far behind, thus resulting in Kenny taking over the identity of an outsider. By the end of the narrative Kenny switches schools in the third grade, gains an IEP, and starts to get help with his literacy issues. He explains how proud he was of himself when he read his first book. A shift away from an outsider identity is evident; Kenny moves into a success identity to finish off his narrative. Alexander describes the success identity as someone who is “improving [their] reading and writing skills; invokes optimistic and future-looking rhetoric views; views literacy as utilitarian and useful, a means to economic, cultural, social, and political success” (615). With the help of new teachers and a new school, Kenny is able to further his literacy skills, resulting in success. This literacy narrative follows exactly to William’s identity shift pattern. Kenny was able to work with his disabilities and overcome the feeling of being on the outside, and feeling separated from other students in order to become successful in literacy.
Original 2:
Although there is strong evidence that supports Williams’ pattern of identity shift, there are also some students who do not support the pattern within their narratives. In Skylah Buchanan’s literacy narrative “Living in a Fairytale,” she does the exact opposite of Williams’ pattern. Skylah starts off her narrative explaining how much she loved to read as a child. Her mother would read to her every night, and she was always excited to find a new book to indulge in. She explains that, “when [she] started off, [she] really loved to read, [she] was so eager to pick up a book. [She] liked to challenge [herself] with new books and different genres like many of [her] classmates” (Buchanan Paragraph 2). In the beginning of her narrative, Skylah presents herself with an identity of a child prodigy. Alexander defines a child prodigy as someone who “excels at reading and writing from an early age . . . includes tales of prolific reading . . . and being read to by parents” (615). Already there is evidence that is unsupportive of Williams’ pattern. Rather than starting off her narrative with an issue, or a problem that she needs to overcome, Skylah is feeling great about herself. At this point in her narrative, she loves to read and she feels confident in her literacy abilities. All of that changes when she enters middle school. The assigned books she is introduced to are not like the books she enjoys to read. Her love for reading starts to fade away. Skylah states that, “seventh grade really ruined it for [her] with a vile English teacher named Mrs. Thiboutot” (Paragraph 3). At this point, she is starting to take over a victim identity. Her seventh grade teacher is blamed for her newfound disgust for reading. Unlike some other narratives, this is not something Skylah overcomes. Unfortunately, she continues her dislike for reading into highschool. Her literacy narrative represents a pattern that is the complete opposite of Williams’ pattern. Rather than overcoming her newfound dislike for reading to further enhance her literacy skills (such as Williams’ pattern suggests), she is stuck in her negative view of literacy. She starts off her life with a love for reading that she now thinks she will never get back.
Revised 2:
Although there is strong evidence that supports Williams’ pattern of an identity shift, there are also some students who do not support the pattern within their narratives. In Skylah Buchanan’s literacy narrative “Living in a Fairytale,” her identity shift is the exact opposite of Williams’ pattern. Skylah starts off her narrative explaining how much she loved to read as a child. Her mother would read to her every night, and she was always excited to find a new book to indulge in. She explains that, “when [she] started off, [she] really loved to read, [she] was so eager to pick up a book. [She] liked to challenge [herself] with new books and different genres like many of [her] classmates” (Buchanan Paragraph 2). In the beginning of her narrative, Skylah presents herself with an identity of a child prodigy. Alexander defines a child prodigy as someone who “excels at reading and writing from an early age . . . includes tales of prolific reading . . . and being read to by parents” (615). Here, there is already evidence that is complicating Williams’ pattern. Rather than starting off her narrative with an issue, or a problem that she needs to overcome, Skylah begins the narrative confident in her literacy achievements. All of that changes when she enters middle school. The assigned books she is introduced to are not like the books she enjoys to read. Her love for reading seems to come to a halt. Skylah states that, “seventh grade really ruined it for [her] with a vile English teacher named Mrs. Thiboutot” (Paragraph 3). At this point, she is starting to take over a victim identity. Her seventh grade teacher is blamed for her newfound disgust for reading. Unlike some other narratives, this is not something Skylah overcomes. Her literacy narrative represents a pattern that is the complete opposite of Williams’ pattern. Rather than overcoming her newfound dislike for reading to further enhance her literacy skills (such as Williams’ pattern suggests), she is stuck in her negative view of literacy. She starts off her life with a love for reading that she now thinks she will never get back. Skylah’s narrative is one of many that may complicate Williams’ pattern.
