ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 introduces the study as a research of the way liberal forms of government deploy conceptualisations of literacy in imagining a secure and civil society. It draws attention to governmental reasoning in its uses of literacy by examining arguments made by governments and policy makers about the uses of literacy and education and how it can be of benefit to the nation and to individual citizens. Two contexts are offered: First drawing on the work of Lake and Reynolds, policies used to restrict citizenship entitlements at the turn of the nineteenth century are discussed. Here, the practice of using literacy to test citizenship are shown to be a global phenomenon that are located in the Unites States, Natal and Australia. Second, the introduction of the Australian Languages and Literacy Policy, is critiqued for the way literacy education is connected to human capital development. The discussion sets the ground for evaluating claims made about the effects of illiteracy or literacy practices not consistent with mainstream social norms and which, from various standpoints, pose risks to national security. The scope of the study is mapped out and takes account of the uses of genealogical methods in education studies, the influence of the Enlightenment on contemporary political practice, political stances in organisations like the United Nations, the relationship between literacy, education and security in Australian political life, and the global intersection of discourses about our capabilities as literate citizens.
