Bicultural identity and literacy practices

There is a great deal of research exploring the relationship between second language acquisition and identity (e.g. Pavlenko & Lantolf 2000, Norton 2000). Much of this research has raised issues of identity and power, specifically how the opportunities for literary practice in a second language are socially structured (Habermas 1987). There has been no research, however, into the role of writing in the (re)-construction of second language user identity. Identity formation is supported by new developments in second language acquisition (SLA) theory, namely Sfard’s participation metaphor (PM), which has emerged in SLA literature as a complement to acquisition metaphor (AM) and views SLA as a process of ‘becoming a member of a certain community’ (Sfard 1998). Participation for bilingual adults is not just about aligning themselves with the requirements of a new discourse community, but it is a profound struggle to reconstruct the self. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to show how dual cultural identities operate within bilingual individuals and what kind of changes occur in their native cultural and linguistic frameworks when they are extended to include another cultural and linguistic framework. These frameworks might complement or oppose each other, but eventually they enrich the individual’s identity