Illusions and the end of Literacy

To a packed, standing room only crowd, Chris Hedges kicked off the Ottawa International Writers Festival in a big way. For a presentation billed as "Big Idea: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle," Hedges spent very little time talking about literacy and its demise. In fact, the subject came up only twice. As an educator with an interest in literacy, both personally and from the perspective of "what do we teach our students?" I was disappointed. But when it comes to the Big Idea, Hedges delivered.

For me, and hopefully for others, the festival represents a forum to discuss the big ideas facing society from a multitude of different angles, bringing together writers of many persuasions, but more importantly, thinkers who view the big ideas in a variety of ways. Often the topics include international affairs, the environment, religion/God, poverty, discrimination, politics, war, what it means to be Canadian, and any one of the many current local and world issues. Hedges, in his address to the crowd, touched on all of these big ideas, connecting them through an unrestrained, slap-you-in-the-face-with-reality orientation to the world as we know it.

Hedges's view of reality is blunt, grim, confrontational, and haunting if fully understood. He describes the world as being pornographized in the sense that, within certain channels, it is acceptable to exploit others. He depicts the United States on the at.verge of collapse from decades of corruption and gave evidence that Obama is no different. Globally, he showed how the liberal, religious mainstream has failed society, leaving the corrupt, dogmatic religious right to gain popularity. He also talked about the environment and our failure collectively to do anything about it.

What does all this have to do with literacy? While people can read, many choose not to, opting instead for the illusionary world of the internet rather than face reality. By not reading, people are not thinking, instead buying into the illusionary world of images, created by those with power in order to maintain the status quo and thus their power. Others are not bothering to learn to read, feeling that they can get by with marginal literacy skills and what they see on TV.

He accused the people of clinging to our illusions that none of this is happening, leading to a complete failure to solve the problems. But really, with all that is apparently wrong with society, can you really blame the common person for wanting to cling to the illusion of prosperity? In many ways, I must admit to avoiding thinking about all the problems in the world because it can be stressful and depressing to think about that when you feel powerless to change it.

I like to find and believe in what is good in the world because despite the impending global doom, I believe that there is humanity left and I choose to cling to that and nourish it. Oddly enough, Hedges also sees and values this humanity as a way to conquer evil in the world. He needs to see the reality as it is to get to hope. I find that his reality is a little scary, so I run to hope, hide behind hope, and look back only when necessary to remember what it is that I hope for and make sure that I guide myself through wisely. Like Karen Armstrong, Hedges considers compassion, the selfless giving of ourselves to the greater good, to be the key to the survival of humans on the planet. Given that both Hedges and Armstrong spoke to packed crowds, this bodes well for humanity, that perhaps others share this view and desire to see more from the human race.

But while the crowds appear receptive to the big idea, the big questions of "how?" and "what can I do to make a difference?" go largely unanswered. It is important to selflessly give to others, but how much? And what if you are so poor that you have nothing to give? Hedges promotes non-cooperation with the powers that be, but this is much easier said than done, especially given that these powers RUN THE WORLD. While all the well-meaning people fight over the answers to these questions, the powerful gain more, the poor sink farther, and the world continues on its current course.

As for me, I believe in humanity, help others as much as I can, aim for environmental responsibility, read, think, and teach the next generation to do the same, and hope for the best. _________________________________________________________________Save up to 84% on Windows 7 until Jan 3—eligible CDN College & University students only. Hurry—buy it now for $39.99!http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9691635

Comments

[Donald R. Officer]

A few days ago I posted a review of Empire of Illusion to this board. (See: Imperial hallucinations in the review section.) I also attended the Festival event. In a sense, that literacy problem Chris Hedges does not really address squarely is nevertheless implicit in his process. Let me try to explain how I see it.

Hedges is a serious investigative reporter who has taken on a subject probably too large to treat adequately in any medium. Still, he knows that a determinedly literate reader once motivated will neither stop thinking about nor reading on the topic. The author mentioned during the Q&A that he had been raised in the social gospel movement and fervently hoped that drawing attention to serious situations was an adequate prompt to initiate social change. Journalists like evangelists tend to believe that. What they do not appreciate is that for many people ominous forebodings discourage action. Hedges was, for instance, very disparaging of the positive psychology and appreciative inquiry approaches. Yet although both can be hijacked or exploited, their techniques offer ameliorating encouragement to individuals and organizations mired in despair.

I truly liked the book as well as the speaker who reminds us that we could lead far more meaningful not to say fuller, more ethical lives. The reporting in particular was exemplary. The rhetoric, not so much. Frankly, if America is brought down, it will be through fundamental geopolitical shifts not by peccadilloes or narcissistic excesses. On the level of argument, this author tends to resemble that prototypical outcast in the hair shirt who carries a picket that reads, "The end is nigh!"