The Importance of Traditional Literacy and the Effects of the Modern-Day Media Alexa Luzzi PR442 Professor Walter Greason 23 February 2017 Society is constantly changing and evolving over time. As different aspects of society changes, there are people who accept these changes and those who critique them. Critical theory is a theory that is largely used to confront the historical, social, and ideological forces and structures that produce and constrain it. According to John Creswell, central themes that can be subsumed under critical theory include the interpretation of the context of social interactions, societal struggle, and critical analysis. “The scholar who works from this perspective seeks to conduct studies that help …show more content…
Literacy is a fundamental part of society that is constantly changing and evolving. From the 17th century to the late 19th century, people lived in a “typographic America”; printed matter was all that was available. “There were no movies to see, radio to hear, photographs to look at, records to play, television to watch. Public business was channeled into and expressed through print, which became the model, the metaphor, and the measure of all discourse.” The printed word controlled entertainment, education, and influenced the way people expressed themselves due to the fact that print was the only outlet for …show more content…
Men, women, girls, and boys from all over United States were reading these comic books made up of simplistic words and illustrations. Superman became “a cultural icon entrenched in every medium of the time.” It started with comics, then radio, feature films, ongoing television series, and movies. This happened with all the major superheroes: Batman, Iron Man, Captain America, Deadpool, etc. As previously discussed, Postman would not approve of any of these mediums. Postman preaches the understanding of words, not visuals, is what makes a well-articulated person. He would assert that all of the people who consumed those mediums were almost foolish in a sense and were contributing to the devolving