#1: What is Basic Writing?

What is Basic Writing?

Truth be told, I’ve never given even a single thought to what Basic Writing may or may not be prior to this moment. Now that I have considered the matter, albeit very briefly, I still don’t know if I’ve any real idea of what it is or how to articulate what I do or do not know. That said, I’ll give it a huck just the same:

Basic Writing is perhaps first and foremost one’s initial discovery and recognition that writing is itself a legitimate and powerful means for not only expressing one’s self but also a means (or an alternative means, in the very least) for confronting and identifying one’s self, if only those facets and dimensions of the self that have previously gone unnoticed or been neglected. (Clearly, I’m more or less working off of class discussion and the recorded interview with Mike Rose.) From there Basic Writing gradually becomes the conscious attempt to develop an ability to convey one’s thoughts, feelings, and/or ideas in a logical and lucid manner vis-a-vis the written word, while eventually—or perhaps concurrently—gaining the fundamental grammatical and rhetorical skills necessary to do so at some commonly accepted level (i.e. professional, academic, literary, etc.) of proficiency. Or the goal may be only to successfully achieve a “higher” level of basic literacy, I don’t know. I’m sure there’s a great deal more to it than what I’ve written thus far, but I’m going to let it ride for the time being.