Literacy as an aesthetic of resistance: The silent revolution from the margins to the center (Atena Editora)

Abstract

This article investigates how literacy can also be seen and understood aesthetically. Adopting a qualitative approach, centered on a narrative case study of a 65-year-old man participating in a literacy program, interviews were carried out in the context of an adult literacy course. The article first discusses the historical evolution of philosophical aesthetics, highlighting its limitation in considering some actions as aesthetic. In this sense, the research appropriates the ideas of contemporary artists, such as Marcel Duchamp, with his ready-mades, to show how the notion of aesthetics can be expanded, thus inaugurating a true revolution not only in aesthetic judgment, but also in subjective perception of the artist, who ultimately decides what art is. Duchamp, therefore, by challenging traditional concepts of art, proposes that choice and context are sufficient to transform common objects into artistic expressions. In this context, the ability to read and write represents an artistic act, as it redefines identity, similar to the transformation of common objects into art. Furthermore, the article emphasizes the importance of including marginalized voices in academic research and promoting an interdisciplinary vision that values subjectivity and lived experience. It is highlighted how literacy can elevate the common to a status of dignity and recognition, transforming lives through education as a true artistic expression.