This classic work explores the vast differences between oral and literate cultures offering a very clear account of the intellectual, literary and social effects of writing, print and electronic technology. The subject of this book is the differences between orality and literacy. Dec 10, 2012 one of the best and most challenging books ive read in recent months is walter j. Full text of ong walter, orality and literacy see other formats. His many publications have been highly influential for studies in the evolution of consciousness. Youre writing about a people who had not concept of a dictionary. Ong l iterary history is no longer entirely literary. Ongs work on orality and literacy that to look up the word orality in the oxford english dictionary is now a defamiiiarizing act. Ong begins with a discussion of literacy, and its assumed naturalness. Ong on the differences between orality and literacy new. It explores the changes in consciousness that have been wrought by the introduction of literacy and then print into human culture. Wright sussex are coediting orality and literacy, a special issue of 19.
These occur in the morality plays of the late middle ages, which employ orality. Orality, literacy, and modern media in davdcrowlyanaul heyer, communication in history. His major interest was in exploring how the transition from orality to literacy influenced culture and changed human consciousness. Buy orality and literacy new accents 2 by ong, walter j. The book, so far, is a corker, and looks to have significant implications for any discussion of markets as conversations and the like. Ong says that the problem with sound is that it is evanescent.
The issue draws on contributions to a series of events on the theme that took place in london between january and june 2012, and also features. Were constantly surrounded by words, texts, and images. And so with western european literacy styles generally. In 1978 ong served as elected president of the modern language association. Oh, ong, you made some good points, but this read surprisingly pretentious considering the subject matter. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Pdf literacy and the oral foundation of education researchgate. The chapter draws heavily from the work of soukup 2004 and farrell 2000 as their contribution to the scholar is impressive and thorough.
It was the moment i realized that these errors are just the way he described literacy, dead. Ong, 9780415538374, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. Walter ong oral cultures and early writing youtube. How have the prejudices of literate written culture made it more difficult for us to. Writing, a process, for ong, of putting spoken language into writing is ruled by contrived, articulatable rules 81 but, for ong, this isnt a problem. One of the best and most challenging books ive read in recent months is walter j. Ong professor ong has managed to synthesize an incredible amount of thought and at the same time has carried some of his earlier ideas still further. Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Walter jackson ong sj november 30, 1912 august 12, 2003 was an american jesuit priest, professor of english literature, cultural and religious historian and philosopher. Orality, literacy, and medieval textualization walter j. A scenesetting chapter that situates ong s work within the historical and disciplinary context of postwar americanism and the rise of communication and media studies.
He considers the impact of orality literacy studies not only on literary criticism and theory but on our very understanding of what it is to be a human. Postmodernism and the politics of culture pdf free. Ong calls writing a technological revolution that not only transformed societies, but also restructured the way individuals think and feel in the privacy of their own minds. Journal of communication, v30 n1 p197204 win 1980 treats orality and literacy in two ways. Ongs extraordinary orality and literacy which documents the invention of writing and its effect on culture. Some psychodynamics of orality in the book orality and literacy, walter ong examines primary oral cultures. Orality and literacy 25 years later semantic scholar. This thirtieth anniversary edition coinciding with ong s. Sep 02, 2009 walter ongs orality and literacy is something of a classic.
This post is the first in a series of notes on walter ongs book orality and literacy. Buy orality and literacy new accents 3 by walter j. The changes, according to ong, have been momentous. The technologizing of the word, provides some helpful reflection on the distinctive nature of cultures which have not been totally subsumed by the values of a literacy and mass media. Ongs classic work provides a fascinating insight into the social effects of oral, written, printed and electr. It serves as an overview of his work as it relates to the discipline of communication. For oral cultures, words are only represented as sounds. As i read ong, i kept having what i will call ongmoments. As he says, to call writing artificial is not to condemn it, but to. From the pdf of mcclouds chapter 4, take a screen shot of a panel or. Ong calls writing a technological revolution that not only transformed societies, but also restructured the way individuals think and. Ong on the differences between orality and literacy walter ong characterises the main differences between the languages of oral and literate cultures in these terms.
Agree with walter ong on the other hand i do think it is a little ridiculous to spend so much time arguing about which form of communication is better every form of technology serves a purpose it is up to us to find out what that purpose is. Orality and literacy professor walter ongs book explores some of the profound changes in our thought processes, personality and social structures which are the result, at various stages of our history, of the development of speech, writing and print. The technologizing of the word 25 years ago, in 1982. Ong walter jackson ong sj november 30, 1912 august 12, 2003 was an american jesuit priest, professor of english literature, cultural and religious historian and philosopher. Ong offers fascinating insights into oral genres across the globe and through time. A closing chapter that follows up ong s work on orality and literacy in relation to evolving media forms, with a discussion of recent criticisms of ong s. Pdf traces the richness of oral forms of expression used in nonliterate societies from ancient. Toward a philosophy of computing how to philosophize with internetworked electronic computing machinery brought to you by. In orality and literacy, walter ong gives a fascinating account of how the development of writing and moveable print has forever changed the way people think and process information. Interdisciplinary studies in the long nineteenth century, which will appear in spring 2014. This includes contrasts between virtuality, literacy, and. Communication theoryorality and literacy wikibooks, open.
Ong s classic work provides a fascinating insight into the social effects of oral, written, printed and electronic technologies, and their impact on philosophical, theological, scientific and literary thought. And he projects his analysis further into the age of mass electronic communications. If we are sensitive now to intertextuality, to the dependency of texts for their existence and meaning on other texts, we are sensitive also to the historical origins of literature out of oral verbalization. His account has more than just historical interest, however, as there remain in the world today many cultures that are primarily oral. It is possible to generalize somewhat about the psychodynamics of primary oral cultures, that is, of oral cultures untouched by writing. Jul 24, 2009 walter ong, a jesuit priest who was based largely at harvard university, died in 2003, aged 91. Jan 23, 2007 professor mindy mcadamss presentation about some of the key ideas from walter j. Walter ong, writing is a technology that restructures thought. Walter ong s 1988 book orality and literacy was a landmark in communication theory, articulating many of the central concerns of the toronto school about the relationship between technologies of. Piers young august 17, 2005 notes 1 comment following on a little tardily from mays notes.
His major interest was in exploring how the transition from orality to literacy. Ong works continue reading walter ong on orality and literacy. I develop and extend my literacy skills when i have opportunities to. Read walter ong, chapter 1 using the principles of active reading, and come in. Professor walter ongs book explores some of the profound changes in our. Walter benjamins fascination with drugs, and tourism as the avatars of a heretofore unthought radical discourse. Orality, literacy, and modern media walter oug walter ong was, until his recent retirement, professorofhumanities atsaint ljuis university. Orality, literacy, and modern media walter ong its often difficult to imagine primary oral culture. Walter wongs orality and literacy provides the reader, who by definition is a member of the literate world, with insights into the rich oral cultures that spawned the chirographic writing and the typographic print cultures that followed. Read orality and literacy 30th anniversary edition by walter j. A closing chapter that follows up ongs work on orality and literacy in relation to evolving media forms, with a discussion of recent criticisms of ongs approach, and an assessment of his concept of the evolution of consciousness. This paper serves as an analysis of the contribution of walter j. Full text of ong walter, orality and literacy internet archive.