One of the most striking impacts of digital technology on
our habits — beyond a doubt — concerns reading. When you think of the combined
effects of quick communication, such as email, text, e-books, news you read on
websites, less-than-perfect machine/computer translations, Wikipedia, tablets, and
the fact that the overwhelming majority of contents is — one way or the other —
available only in electronic format, you realize the magnitude of the change.
We all feel and experience it, but are perhaps unaware of the way it is shaping
our minds. Technology is moving so fast that we hardly have the time to stop
and understand what is going on.
اضافة اعلان
A global analysis would largely exceed the scope of this
article, but one single aspect of this specific digital revolution is a
question that can perhaps be answered in a reasonable number of words: do the
young still read books?
Last year, an article was published by The Guardian, titled
“Children are reading less than ever before, research reveals.” The headline
may sound legitimate at first, but the wording is a little deceptive, because
children certainly read as much if not more than their elders; they just read
differently.
A more relevant question would have been: Do children read
the same way their parents used to read? Do they read the same material? Do
they read “real” books: full-length
stories, novels, fiction,
poetry, classics, and real literature?
The ubiquitous digital format, along with various types and
sizes of screens, is changing the nature of content and vice-versa. Whether you
are young or less so, we all read more, and we read a lot on many types of mediums.
Mobile devices make us read more. Instant news about anything and everything also
makes us read more. Whether doing business or learning, the “e-” factor is here
and because of it we read all the time. Mobile networking is also aggravating
the situation, not to mention expected 5G.
The need for quick, written digital communication is
changing the language from well-written to acceptable. Who cares about correct
syntax and grammar — not to mention style — if the party at the other end
understands what the message means? Just read the comments on YouTube and you
will get an idea.
The issue, therefore, is not about quantity or age, but
about the quality and the type of content we read — or write for that matter.
The fact remains that most of us, regardless of age or generation,
do not read books like we used to. For many years, (until about 2010), the
writer of this article used to read an average of one book per week. Now that
number might be two books per year.
The kind of knowledge, culture, spiritual wealth, and other
invaluable educational and mental benefits that books can bring, cannot be
found in the type of content we have come to consume. Compared to literature or
well-written and researched articles, the type of content we consume is like fast
food and instant coffee.
Perhaps the key words here are “short and fast”. Few of us
are able to find the time to read an entire book, from the moment it exceeds 100
pages. Think for yourself: If someone sends you a link to a video that they
find interesting and want you to watch; wouldn’t you rather skip it if the
duration exceeds three or four minutes? That’s how inpatient we have become.
So perhaps the quintessential question should not be limited
to asking about youth’s reading habits, but should be extended to include all
generations: How many of us can still find the time to read books? If it is all
about digital, screens, technology, and networking, then how come these amazing
e-books are not as widely used as they should be? After all, they do bring us
the best of both worlds: real literature on a digital screen connected to the
world, which you can take with you everywhere.
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Opinion & Analysis
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