Literacy’s Role in Appalachian Diversity

This paper presents selected stories and analysis from the collection Re-Reading Appalachia: Literacy, Place, and Cultural Resistance (University Press of Kentucky 2015), co-edited by the presenter. Re-Reading Appalachia argues that reading and writing practices, given the longtime stereotyping of Appalachian illiteracy, play a significant role in marking and managing diversity within Appalachian communities. This presentation advances this argument, and illustrates it through the stories and analyses of contributors to the volume. One used the literacies he learned as a fundamentalist preacher to manage his identity as a gay man in Appalachia. One documents the use of dramatic writing to create empathy among the diverse groups that make up an Urban Appalachian community. Two contributors (including the presenter) demonstrate the ways blended academic and Appalachian literacy practices help them negotiate their Appalachian identities as academics who no longer live in the region. Ultimately, this presenter argues for special attention to reading and writing, both in and out of schools, as ways to manage the diverse identities that make up Appalachia