Big Picture Ideas:

1. Discourses cannot be taught
2. Cuddy’s student was already in the DIscourse, she just wasn’t applying her knowledge
3. Inert traits vs primary Discourse

 

Barclay’s Paragraphs:

1. Discourses are a learned social construct that requires apprenticeship in order to master them. I agree with Gee’s idea that one cannot be taught beliefs but instead, they evolve their values around their experiences. With that being said, more attention should be given to Gee’s statement around combinations of saying, writing, doing, being, valuing, and believing. Gee believes that “Discourses cannot be mastered by overt instruction”. Someone cannot exist within a social circle without consistently doing actions that are deemed appropriate by the social circle. “We acquire [Discourses] fluently to the extent that we are given access to these institutions and are allowed apprenticeships within them” (Gee 8). One cannot simply adopt a Discourse because of a change of environment. If you take the college transition, for example, some students struggle to adapt to the college or university’s Discourse. Others are able to work their way into the Discourse more easily. Gee contributes this to the basic building blocks of your primary Discourse. “The primary Discourse of many middle-class homes had been influenced by secondary Discourses like those used in schools and business” (Gee 9). Gee argues in these two quotes that your ability to join a discourse is dependent on how much exposure you are allowed. Those that grew up in a household influenced by secondary Discourses like school and business, are more likely to spend more time around those Discourses and will adopt those Discourses much more readily than those that did not grow up with that background. Different social classes contribute different secondary Discourse information. I believe that Gee is right, and it is more apparent when you look at lower socioeconomic backgrounds. It is incredibly hard for people that are brought up in poor conditions to break free from that cycle because they need a mentor to help teach them the basics of another Discourse and introduce them to another way of thinking and believing. Most of these mentors are found in schools, but low-income school districts do not attract many teachers of high-income background. This phenomenon can be viewed in Cuddy’s recollection of her time at Harvard and her inability to recognize that she belonged in the rigorous program.
2. One thing that Gee and Cuddy discuss, whether implicitly or explicitly, is that some people have an easier time getting into a Discourse due to their background. Their primary and secondary Discourses may allow them to transfer some aspects of Discourses into the new one. Cuddy argues that a person is capable of faking their confidence and if done regularly, they can become confident. Cuddy was consulting a student who did not believe that she belonged in class, Cuddy responded by suggesting that she fakes her confidence in class just enough to participate, she then explains the results. “She comes back to me months later, and I realized that she had not just faked it till she made it, she had actually faked it till she became it. So she had changed”. Cuddy’s student used the “fake it ‘til you make it” method to become a more confident student. She provides evidence that one can tell themselves they belong and eventually they will start to display the characteristics they didn’t believe they had. While I believe that there is psychological evidence that confidence boosters can give you more overall self-esteem, it does not account for Gee’s argument that Discourses and your ability to join them is dependent on your other Discourse knowledge, another point that I agree with. When discussing the transferability of certain Discourse traits, Gee says, “The primary discourse of many middle-class homes has been influenced by secondary Discourses like those used in schools and business”I agree with Gee because it makes sense that you cannot learn a Discourse by having someone teach you. To fully learn how to do something you have to try to do it yourself. It’s kind of like riding a bike. Instructions on how to pedal and maintain balance are not enough to teach you how to ride until you get on the bike and try it out yourself. To add on to this argument, the rate at which you can successfully ride the bike depends on how long you spend on the bike, and the availability of someone else to help you. Cuddy tells her student that she belongs in the class and she deserves to get the best education but she needs to work for it. I believe that the student is using Gee’s concept of mushfake to gain apprenticeship in the class Discourse. Students that attend Harvard have the knowledge of school and business already instilled in them. The student’s primary discourse allows her to transfer some of this knowledge to appropriately participate in class. She has already witnessed several other classes so she has the ability to fake her confidence enough to speak in class.

ENG110J