Expanding Walter Ong's Theory of Orality and Literacy Through a Culture of Virtuality Jennifer Camille Dempsey
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Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 2014 Virtualizing The orW d: Expanding Walter Ong's Theory Of Orality And Literacy Through A Culture Of Virtuality Jennifer Camille Dempsey Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Dempsey, J. (2014). Virtualizing The orW d: Expanding Walter Ong's Theory Of Orality And Literacy Through A Culture Of Virtuality (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/478 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. VIRTUALIZING THE WORD: EXPANDING WALTER ONG’S THEORY OF ORALITY AND LITERACY THROUGH A CULTURE OF VIRTUALITY A Dissertation Submitted to the School of Education Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education By Jennifer Camille Dempsey May 2014 Copyright by Jennifer Camille Dempsey May 2014 VIRTUALIZING THE WORD: EXPANDING WALTER ONG’S THEORY OF ORALITY AND LITERACY THROUGH A CULTURE OF VIRTUALITY By Jennifer Camille Dempsey Approved March 4, 2014 ________________________________ ________________________________ Gary Shank, Ph.D. David D. Carbonara, Ed.D. Professor of Educational Foundations and Director of Instructional Technology Leadership Program (Committee Chair) Assistant Professor of Instructional Technology (Committee Member) ________________________________ Marie Martin, Ed.D. Adjunct Professor of Instructional Technology (Committee Member) ________________________________ ________________________________ Olga M. Welch, Ed.D. Joseph Kush, Ph.D. Dean, School of Education Chair, Department of Instruction and Professor of Education Leadership in Education Professor of Education iii ABSTRACT VIRTUALIZING THE WORD: EXPANDING WALTER ONG’S THEORY OF ORALITY AND LITERACY THROUGH A CULTURE OF VIRTUALITY By Jennifer Camille Dempsey May 2014 Dissertation supervised by Dr. Gary Shank. This dissertation seeks to create a vision for virtuality culture through a theoretical expansion of Walter Ong’s literacy and orality culture model. It investigates the ubiquitous and multimodal nature of the virtuality cultural phenomenon that is mediated by contemporary technology and not explained by pre-existing cultural conventions. Through examining the theoretical underpinnings of orality and literacy culture, the dissertation explores the cultural shift that is just beginning to restructure human consciousness through the ways that society is connecting, exploring and communicating. Further, this dissertation examines the contrasts between virtuality culture features and those related to traditional literacy and orality types, including the gap between the theory of secondary orality and virtuality culture. This dissertation also proposes three ways that contemporary technology creates human presence related to virtuality culture. Finally, this dissertation describes the broad implications for the evolution of virtuality culture in iv areas such as education, technology, literacy, philosophy, politics, linguistics, ethics, history, the arts and cultural studies. v DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to a very special group of women. This work could not have been completed without their support and friendship. In honor of Alice, Angel, Brooke, Candie, Cheri, Emily, Fadumina, Holly, Jeanette, Jenny, Jessica, Kathy, Marie, Melissa, Mindy, Sarah, Shelley, Tara, and Vanessa - You have been there during the most challenging times encouraging me to stay focused and finish this work. There were days where I remembered all that you have accomplished, which helped me find the courage and determination to keep going during the rough patches. Thank you also to Sue for your leadership, support and encouragement. I am grateful for all the times you guided me and reminded me that everything just “takes the time.” Thank you also to Maureen for encouraging me to keep moving forward and to stay focused on what I want in my life. I am grateful to you for your leadership, support and caring. You are all such an inspiration. I am so blessed that you are in my life. May this work remind you that anything is possible. Love you ladies! vi ACKNOWLEDGMENT This work would not have been possible without the wisdom, encouragement and generous support of my dissertation chair, Dr. Gary Shank. I am so grateful for your guidance through one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I would also like to thank Drs. David Carbonara and Marie Martin. I am very grateful to you for your time and support of my work. Thank you so much for serving on my committee and for everything else you have done to encourage me. Thank you to all my family and friends who were there during both the challenging and good times. Thank you dear Sophia Lena for reminding me to take time to play, be silly and smile. You have taught me so much through this journey. You are the brightest, loveliest and most beautiful daughter I could have ever hoped for and I love you dear one. To mom and dad, for raising me to have the persistence and courage to go after what I wanted in life, and to work hard and never give up. I appreciate your love and support and everything else you have done. To Jami, Vic, Chris, Brianne, Ella and Connor, for the light and happy times relaxing, especially during the holidays and other special times. Those moments helped me gather the energy I needed to keep going with my writing. To Bridget, for reminding me to stay curious and connected. To Cheri, for being my cheerleader and good friend along the way. To Don and Lynnell, for the love and support that was so appreciated. We have certainly had some good times at the farm and at the B&B. To Greg, for reminding me to laugh once in awhile and for sharing the ship metaphor, which perfectly describes my journey through this work. To Jane, for you friendship and the beautiful prayer shawl with its magic that helped my writing. To Jennifer, for your belief in my work and for cheering me on throughout this process. To Mara, for the support and encouragement, the conversations around ideas, editing my vii work and for sharing your wisdom in this process. To Marie, for all the times you were there to talk and for all the fun times we have shared that helped me through this journey. To Melissa, for all the shared meals and moments, for driving to Pittsburgh for my defense on behalf of the girls and for all you did to encourage and support me. To Monica, for the prayers and for reminding me to follow spirit in my work and life. I would like to thank my IT cohort: To Jordan, Laura, Tammy, Paula, Robin, Rob and Tom, thank you for the journey we shared through the doctoral program, which was one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. The memories of our learning and sharing together will stay with me for the rest of my life. Thank you to those I have worked with since I started this dissertation: To Holly, Jan, Rosie, Cory, Tania, Joyce, Melinda and Stephanie, as well as the Art in Action teaching artists, teachers and administrators. I am grateful for the meaningful collaboration and creativity that contributed to my work. To my current and former students and colleagues, you have reminded me to stay passionate about my work and to keep learning. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract .......................................................................................................................... iv Dedication ...................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgment .......................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ............................................................................................................... xiii Chapter I ......................................................................................................................... 1 Finding The Ground............................................................................................. 1 The Emergence of Virtuality Culture ........................................................ 2 Beginning This Theoretical Quest ............................................................ 4 Chapter II ...................................................................................................................... 10 Overview ........................................................................................................... 10 The Wisdom of Walter Ong ............................................................................... 12 Introduction to Primary Orality .............................................................. 16 The Features of Orally Based Thought and Expression ........................... 16 Codifying Oral Performance ................................................................... 18 Rhetoric and The Origins of Consciousness ............................................ 19 Medieval Communication and Technology............................................. 20 The Evolution of Literacy Cultures ......................................................... 21 The Features of Literacy Based Thought and Expression ........................ 23 Secondary Orality..................................................................................