The Consequences of Literacy

Jack Goody and Ian Watt

Cambridge University Press, 1963.

The Author Jack Goody was a British social anthropologist and a prominent lecturer in
Cambridge University. While Ian Watt was a literary critic and a professor of English in
Stanford University.

The tripartite factors of analysing mankind’s past as described as the basis of development
of language and that of writing. Man as an animal can be studied based on the perspectives
of zoologists, anthropologists and sociologists. The language in human race has formed
various complex social organisations. While that of the animals is quite instinctive and
genetically transmitted. Man learns and transmits verbally through cultural heritage. As the
authors truly say that there is no known distinction between non literate and literate cultures.
The proportion of society who can read and write has major impacts on the growth and
development of a society. In order to understand the various aspects of mankind’s history it is
important to study mankind. It is quite contradictory that the in order to analyse man, the
anthropologists enquires about the primitive mind while the sociologists questions the
rational thoughts of a civilised man.

The cultural traditions in non-literate societies mainly dependent on the oral transmission of
myths and incidents. Here the authors talk about the generally accepted ways of
transmission i.e. symbols, gestures, and oral recitation and what were the changes that
affected them with time. As per the authors there are three major heritage that comes under
non literate societies that are being passed on through generations. Firstly it’s the material
plant or the natural resources. Secondly it’s the standardised ways of behaving or acting.
These ways are majorly an imitation of the social norms since childhood. And lastly, it’s the
language. Social traditions apart from the material inheritances is held in memory. The more
connected the visual and oral memory the more elaborative their language. With time the oral
memory fades away by forgetting and carrying forward only things that are socially relevant.
The social function can thus be seen as the final stage of what may be called the
homeostatic organisation of the cultural tradition of non-literate society.

The vocal memory was enhanced with the use of drums and instruments. They also helped in
remembering things easily due to influencing melodies for example Homeric epics. With
these inclusions there were also certain drawbacks of vocal transition such as the
authenticity of the information. Hence vocal history wasn’t quite believed as compared to
written. Many a times due to various reasons such as socio political pressure, irrelevance etc.
the vocal history wasn’t promoted and was lost in time. When these vocal histories got
recorded in the later stage after the events had occurred, its interpretations kept on changing
and were adjusted as per the existing social relations. The myths are forgotten and their

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meanings have transformed. Hence there are many factors that affect the growth of
societies.

In the early prehistory graphic forms and engravings through various mediums such as stone,
wood etc. were used to communicate. These early form of alphabets or pictographs were
very complex in nature and requires relevant association of ideas. Slowly there developed a
huge gap between the literate and the illiterate ones, a gap which the literates were interested
in maintaining. The notion of representing sounds by graphic symbol was introduced which
led towards the development of alphabet. It was based on the different kinds of sounds
made. Earlier oral instructions was the only way of learning while language was merely a
mode of presentation. The invention of printing was a huge revolution in the society as the
language now became accessible for everyone to learn. Earlier the slaves used to read out
loud. The non-literates used to be able to distinguish clearly amongst folk tale and myths. The
personal inquiries or research into the most probable versions of events started with
language. Eye witnesses and other reliable clues were being seek. Lastly the authors
elaborates more on the personalities such as Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle etc. They try to
conclude that a consideration of the consequences of literacy and these terms throws some
light not only upon the nature of the Greek achievement also upon the intellectual differences
between simple and complex societies.

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