Literacy as a Social Practice: Mapping out Multimodal Literacy Practices in Middle-Class Beauty Salons

Abstract

Aim of the Study: Literacy is a socio-culturally constructed activity that is deeply associated with social position and identity which varies according to different social and cultural contexts. The study explores multi-literacies as a new world of reading, writing multimodal and mediated practices which offers handling of tech tools, pictures, words, texts, as semiotic forms of communication in addition to the traditional notions of text.

Methodology: The study has adapted and employed qualitative approach and three-dimensional framework of Multi-Layering by (Bloome & Theodorou, 1988). Purposive sampling had been used for the selection of sample from four salons based on selected population of middle class areas of Rawalpindi city. Audio recordings, observations and field notes have been used as research instruments. The study has explored the use of multilingual, multimodal and covert strategies as a means to enhance and facilitate the beautician-client interaction with power imbalance in salon setting.

Findings & Conclusion: It is found through the analysis of data that beauticians maintain their dominance through coordinated actions using beauty artifacts along with multimodal mediated techniques in beauty procedures. Additionally, they extend the notion of customers’ self-care to get them their aspired beauty looks to align with the society’s desired beauty ideals.