Before the era of computers and super cell phones, there was more of an emphasis on the printed word. Newspapers were a social norm and they were everywhere (my parents had at least 3 newspapers delivered to our house in my elementary/ early middle school years), the US postal service was probably working with a few more handwritten letters, and though libraries were never really known for their financial wealth, I am sure they had more business then they do now. Today everything is electronic. Newspapers, as well as book, can be found on line, and texts, emails, blogs and postings on people’s “pages” have decreased the amount of handwritten letters are sent. Along with this wave of new electronic advances, came a change on how people regarded the English language: both how it was spoken and how it was written.
In an article written by Eric Havelock entitled, “The Greek Legacy,” Havelock discussed the original emergence of print and how it changed the world. In the article he says that writing, “…democratized literacy, or rather made democratization possible” (55). Though reading and writing was still only a skill the elite seemed to uphold, it allowed a bigger group of individuals to learn this skill, thus making the opinions and facts of other available to a larger group. This not only changed the way people communicated, but also how they viewed the world. It allowed opinion and views of other people to be communicated, as well as information to be passed as well as documented for future references at a more convenient and quicker rate. This introduction of print media began to change the way people viewed the world in the aspect of print versus speech. It made people realize a new way of communicating. However, oral record remained the primary use of communication and record keeping (Havelock 57). Though the development of writing let people experience a new way of communicating, people found communicating orally to be more beneficial and convenient. Today, the way people communicate is different in that we rely heavily on textual communication. Newspapers, internet, email, texts re all ways in which we communicate on a daily basis. Even when it comes to communicating orally on a phone, people opt to text a message instead.
However, because of these advances in technology that allow us to communicate in a quicker, more convenient way, some people feel as if it is causing humans to regress literally. Susan Jacoby is one of these people. In an article she wrote in the Washington Post in February 2008, she exclaims her fear that the United States in is danger of losing it’s dignity of cultural “capital” due to a mixture of “anti-intellectualism, anti-rationalism and low expectations.” She states that the literacy level amongst college students has steadily decreased between 1984 and 2004, claiming the reason for this decrease is due to the video and thus a decrease in the ability to hold attention for a long period of time. “The shrinking public attention span fostered by video is closely tied to the erosion of general knowledge (Jacoby 2008). Though I can understand Jacoby’ concern about the lack of reading amongst today’s youth, I feel that it isn’t so much of a lack of literacy, but more of a decrease in time. While reading does provide a person with the opportunity to exercise their imagination and also increase their vocabulary, I also feel that in today’s culture time is scarce and a video allows for entertainment in a shorter amount a time that can also allow the person to do other things at the same time. While Jacoby may argue that the need to multitask just proves her point of a short attention span, I think it really is more of a issue of people becoming more efficient.
Not everyone has the view of doom on the American public’s literacy level. Howard Gardner also had an article in the Washington Post in February of 2008, but he had a more optimistic view on things. He believes that people are not becoming dumber, but they are instead adapting to the times and finding better and more convenient ways to convey information to others. The fact that people are no longer writing letters formally to each other means nothing. Rather, he says, people are morphing literacy into a new form. “Few media are likely to disappear completely due to the fact that there are those people that are too stubborn to change and they like things to stay the way that they are. (Gardner 2008). I agree with Gardner and what he is saying. Just because people do not feel that it is necessary to write out long notes and send them in the mail for the recipient to receive it 4 days later does not mean they are stupid. Rather, they are time efficient. The same goes for the way that people now write over text or even email. As I previously mentioned, the American lifestyle is a very busy one that doesn’t allow for much time. If it is possible to write in short hand that is understood by the recipient, then it doesn’t make the sender (or the receiver) illiterate, but instead speaking in a different language.
Gardner also addresses the possibility of disappearance of material books disappearing and becoming completely electronic (Gardner 2008). Though I can see why this may be a concern for many people, I do not think it should be a huge concern. I know that many libraries are putting their books online and make them available to the general public and that books can be purchased online to be put on an ipod for books (of sorts). However, I don’t think that print media will be disappearing completely. People still express a need for books. People like having the physical book in their hands: to underline, to read again and again, to take places where maybe technology isn’t available (such as a plane or the beach). I think the demand for physical books may always be there, t just may not always be as strong as it used to be.
Works Cited
Crowley, David and Paul Heyer. Communication in History: Technology, Culture, Society, 5th edition. Boston: Pearson, 2007, originally published in 2003. (chapter 7)
Gardner, Howard. "The End of Literacy? Don't Stop Reading." The Washington Post 17 Feb. 2008. 2 Mar. 2008 .
Jacoby, Susan. "The Dumbing of America." The Washington Post 17 Feb. 2008. 2 Mar. 2008 .
I completely agree with you that writing is the more superior of the forms of communication. I think that as you said, it is simply evolving. Although we are still reading some traditional books and newspapers, much of what we are reading in the form of written text, is digital. As you mentioned documents come in digital form to read on Sony E Reader or the Amazon Kindle. This proves that the written word is here to stay, it is simply evolving to a new form to suit the demands of a different generation. As you also stated, I do not believe we as a people would have come so far. Without the written word we would not be able to accurately keep track of our histories or define arguments or science, math, or literature.
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