AHSS*2190 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Eric A. Havelock, Logogram
Week 3: Literacy and Print
Possible Impact of Writing
-Plato (Phaedrus): “It will implant forgetfulness in their souls: they will cease to
exercise memory because they rely on that which is written.”
Origins of Writing
-Begins as a visual system for storing information
-Helps societies establish ownership
-We can identify ourselves by names and signatures
-Helps organize early societies
The Alphabet
-More widespread than any other system of written language
-Alphabetic writing represents a single sound of a spoken language by a single
letter
-No other writing system represents sounds of spoken language in such an
efficient and adaptable way
-Most alphabetic forms consist of 24-30 signs used to represent sounds of spoken
language
-Not all written language is phonetic > logographic, signs can represent words or
even concepts
-Can be combination of phonetics/logographic
-What is happening with the way we text and communicate via email?
The Origins of Writing and the Alphabet
-Early writing systems of Sumerians and Egyptians don’t develop further
-Changes in communication technology don’t always come from the culture that
has the most advanced system
-Phoenicians develop a full alphabet, which was later adapted by the Greeks
For Social Literacy to Occur
-Linguistic sound offered by writing system should be exhaustive
-Function should be unambiguous
-Total number of shapes must be held to strict limit so memory isn’t
overwhelmed
Development Lags
-“Under modern conditions there seems to be only a short time lag between the
invention of a device and its full social or industrial application. This was not
true of the alphabet.” - E. H
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Plato (phaedrus): it will implant forgetfulness in their souls: they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is written. Begins as a visual system for storing information. We can identify ourselves by names and signatures. More widespread than any other system of written language. Alphabetic writing represents a single sound of a spoken language by a single letter. No other writing system represents sounds of spoken language in such an efficient and adaptable way. Most alphabetic forms consist of 24-30 signs used to represent sounds of spoken language. Not all written language is phonetic > logographic, signs can represent words or even concepts. Early writing systems of sumerians and egyptians don"t develop further. Changes in communication technology don"t always come from the culture that has the most advanced system. Phoenicians develop a full alphabet, which was later adapted by the greeks. Linguistic sound offered by writing system should be exhaustive.
