Mary-Katherine Alger
ENG 110
How important is the written word? It’s been used by human civilization since the beginning of recorded history for many things: record-keeping, recording events, writing letters, storytelling, communication of information, and more. As civilization has evolved, so has our use of writing and reading. As technology advances, the way that we write and read text changes. When the telephone was invented, writing letters became less common. However, when the modern smart phone was invented, writing texts to communicate gained widespread use. The way we use text will always be changing, the question is, how?
A passage from Karen Swallow Prior’s “How Reading Makes Us More Human” argues that reading and writing are integral parts of the human experience, more than anything else. She argues that reading in itself is important and valuable, not just as a means to learn information. Reading is not something that humans or any other animals do naturally, which makes it a distinctly human phenomenon. She goes on to state further that, “…to “read” means not only to decipher a given and learned set of symbols in a mechanistic way, but also suggests that very human act of finding meaning, of “interpreting” in the sense of “reading” a person or situation.” This shows further that “deep reading” is unique and worthwhile. To her, the written word could not be replaced by any other medium, as there is something unique and special to reading written text.
Others believe that there is not something special about written language, and that it can be replaced by other mediums. One such person is the head of Facebook’s operations in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, Nicola Mendelsohn. In an interview with Quartz Magazine, he says that he believes that the written word may be replaced by video in the near future. In contrast with Prior’s argument, there is no mention of the advantages or uniqueness to text, and both are seen as interchangeable ways to disseminate information, with video being more efficient. He states during the interview, “The best way to tell stories in this world, where so much information is coming at us, actually is video.”
In my own experience, I have done little deep reading. However, the written word has been a fantastic tool for gaining information that I’ve used for years. I’ve read articles, scientific studies, and textbooks to use both for academic research and purely for learning more. Most of the information I’ve found to be useful would be difficult to translate to a video format without simplifying or leaving out pieces of information. Written text has been vital to my education and overall learning about the world. My experiences agree with neither Prior nor Mendelson, as I believe that the written word is not more or less special than any other medium for information, but rather that writing has specific advantages and disadvantages from video or audio. The written word will continue to be used in modern society, not because it is inherently spiritual or special, but because there are times when it is the best tool to use.
Writing has its uses, in storytelling, conveyance of information, and communication. These aspects may be different, more difficult, or impossible in other mediums like audio or video. When it comes to writing stories, not everything can be made into a video series or movie, or even should. Lots of film equipment, actors, staff, and a budget are the minimum required to create a visual story, but the only things required to write a story are time and skill. Text is often used by scientific journals, textbooks, non-fiction books, newspaper publishers, etc. to convey information that may be difficult or unnecessary to convey visually. These important primary sources, whether digital or physical, would cost a lot of time and money to translate into video. Even if written text became less popular, not every piece of text would be able to be turned into videos. In addition, if all information was conveyed through videos or audio, it would make it difficult for deaf or blind individuals to learn from it. It is currently uncommon for online videos to contain readable transcripts, and a method to translate visuals in videos into auditory signals for blind individuals is not commonly used. Using video exclusively would make the world much less accessible for people like this.
The written word has been incredibly important to the development of the human race, as it will continue to be into the future. Writing continues to be a fantastic resource for storytelling, entertainment, and education, and that usefulness will not diminish over time, as it is the most appropriate medium for these things in certain situations.
