The Literacy Myth: Cultural Integration and Social Structure in the Nineteenth Century
by Harvey J. Graff
Originally published in 1979 by Academic Press and in this updated edition by Transaction Press in 1991, Harvey Graff’s pioneering study presents an insightful and impactful interpretation of the place of literacy in 19th-century society and culture. Based on an intensive comparative historical analysis, employing both qualitative and quantitative techniques and a wide range of sources, The Literacy Myth reevaluates the role typically assigned to literacy in historical scholarship, cultural understanding, economic development schemes, and social doctrines and ideologies—leading ultimately to a redefined understanding of literacy in the 19th century. Original and revisionist, The Literacy Myth stands out among work by scholars including Brian Street, Shirley Brice Heath, Sylvia Scribner, and Michael Cole, who along with Graff created The New Literacy Studies in the mid 1980s.
Graff, H. J. (2010). The Literacy Myth at Thirty. Journal of Social History, 43(3), 635–661, https://doi.org/10.1353/jsh.0.0316. Reprinted in 2011 in Literacy Myths, Legacies, and Lessons: New Studies on Literacy by Harvey J. Graff, Transaction Publishers.
Graff, H. J. (2022). The New Literacy Studies and the Resurgent Literacy Myth. Literacy in Composition Studies, 9(1), 47–53. https://doi.org/10.21623/1.9.1.4
Publication Information:
Graff, Harvey J. (2023). The Literacy Myth: Cultural Integration and Social Structure in the Nineteenth Century. The WAC Clearinghouse. https://wacclearinghouse.org/books/landmarks/literacy-myth/ (Originally published in 1991 by Transaction Publishers)
