Mario Adam Espinosa

UWRT 150
3 February 2016
Critical Summary
In Bronwyn T. Williams autobiographical article, Home and away: The tensions of
community, literacy, and identity Williams unveils the lifestyle of a privileged white student in
the education system and how it is easier than that of a non-white. Williams is a literature
professor at the University of Louisville. He uses several references from his own life and
excerpts from Gee to show the difference in academics between white students and non-white.
The purpose of this is to teach people that there is a very prominent difference in lifestyles and
academic careers, but to acknowledge it. The audience of this article is mostly people in the
education system. As a fellow teacher Williams wants to share his experience with other teachers
and show them how to make a difference. Williams uses many words to describe his experience
but a few that really stick out are: literacy, discourse, academic, white, communities.
Key Passages:
Again, my background doesnt make me smarter, but it means I didnt have to learn as much
about critical, analytical, and rhetorical conventions valued in school literacy. Page 342
For example, one secondary discourse I feel comfortable with is baseball; I not only know the
language, but I also understand how, when, and why to use it. On the other hand, the discourse of
fashion eludes me, and almost any conversation about it would quickly mark me as an outsider.
Page 343
We can question why academic discourse is constructed and reproduced as it is and ask who has
traditionally benefited from this approach. Page 346

Uses and Limits:

Williams uses experiences from his own life to help paint a picture for those that have not lived
his lifestyle before. Williams also uses several excerpts from Gee to help support his argument.
Williams has many limits. One is that he has a very biased perspective throughout his entire
article and another is that he never provides a counter argument. He only speaks about his life
and how he was affected. He needs to include more details from the opposite side.