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The upsides and downsides of electronic reading
By Greg Cusack |
November 23, 2012, Friday
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DEAR Wan Lixin,
IN the three years I have been a faithful reader of The Shanghai Daily, I have enjoyed your many columns about books that you have read in which you reflect on reading itself.
Your piece of November 12, 2012, ("Online amenities create utopia of Idiots, curb serious thinking") reminded me of an earlier article by you on October 19, 2012 ("Will a literary prize save a nation of nonreaders?").
In that October article your mood was decidedly downbeat:
"[While] literacy is no longer a problem in China today, [our] book-barren landscape suggests one important failure of our education system - that those who are supposed to have benefited from education never feel any urge to read once they are freed from the shackles of learning. Also, people no longer feel the need to read real books because in this society it's counterproductive to be inspired, to think critically and to benefit from the sweetness and light that is supposed to be the aim and justification of literature."
I think all of us who revere books and for whom reading has been a major factor in our lives can be disappointed in the relative disregard - or undervaluation - of the importance of books that many seem to have.
Interestingly, reading in the United States has actually accelerated since the introduction of e-book readers just over four years ago. A recent Pew Research Institute survey discovered that people with e-book readers (almost one-third of Americans now have some type of e-reader or tablet) read at least nine more books annually (24) than those who read only printed texts (15).
By itself, this does not, of course, tell the whole story. For, while 72 percent of American adults told the Institute that they read at least one book last year, we do not know how many read more than one book, nor do we know whether what they read were relatively "light" or, alternatively, required greater attention and thought. Other surveys have suggested that it is really only a minority of Americans - somewhere between 25 percent and 40 percent of all readers - who devour the most books each year.
Proliferation of e-readers
I am personally quite hopeful that the ongoing proliferation of lower-priced e-readers will allow more people to encounter and embrace the joy and mind-expanding power of books. It is less important, at least initially, what they read than the fact that they are reading.
However, functional literacy is another matter. That far too many draw most of their "information" - however tainted with bias or misinformation - from some form of electronic media is not encouraging.
Americans are not particularly knowledgeable about the past, their own or others'. Nor do Americans seem aware of the nuances of multi-cultural values, nor of how various historical, religious and philosophical approaches can yield conclusions quite different from their own.
When it comes to the often-pernicious impact of computers and tablets, I am of a similar mind to your article of November 12.
Early advocates of both radio and television promised that these new media would serve to bring us all "closer together" through shared experiences and greater understanding and, further, that they would be the means by which "higher culture" could enter individual homes through stimulating drama, enlightening seminars, and meaningful entertainment.
However, it is clear that this is not how events have mostly played out. As an example, the decades-long decline in civility in America is, I believe, a direct consequence of the callous and vulgar humor employed in the lower "art forms" which daily pour into the homes of American citizens.
I fear that something similar to Attention Deficit Disorder, which afflicts so many young people from birth, is also spreading among the adult population. The ready ability of information "online"- however questionable its authenticity or validity - and the multiple sources of entertainment seem to be making focused thinking about the larger picture more difficult.
Having expressed these concerns, I must also note that the young people I have encountered in the States are actually pretty impressive people.
Electronic devices have their definite upsides because they allow people to communicate with each other in ways that my generation did not know.
Today's young also seem more tolerant of diversity, respectful of those with different ways, and mindful of the importance of generosity and courtesy.
We elders of all cultures, for the benefit of our young, have the solemn obligation to provide our youth with clear guidelines about how to live a truly good and meaningful life.
Thank you, Mr Wan, for your continued wise writing!
Sincerely,
Greg Cusack
The author has been a college teacher of American history and political science, the director of the US National Catholic Rural Life Conference; he served as a member of the Iowa State House of Representatives, and retired from public service in the Iowa executive branch in 2004. Shanghai Daily condensed article.
IN the three years I have been a faithful reader of The Shanghai Daily, I have enjoyed your many columns about books that you have read in which you reflect on reading itself.
Your piece of November 12, 2012, ("Online amenities create utopia of Idiots, curb serious thinking") reminded me of an earlier article by you on October 19, 2012 ("Will a literary prize save a nation of nonreaders?").
In that October article your mood was decidedly downbeat:
"[While] literacy is no longer a problem in China today, [our] book-barren landscape suggests one important failure of our education system - that those who are supposed to have benefited from education never feel any urge to read once they are freed from the shackles of learning. Also, people no longer feel the need to read real books because in this society it's counterproductive to be inspired, to think critically and to benefit from the sweetness and light that is supposed to be the aim and justification of literature."
I think all of us who revere books and for whom reading has been a major factor in our lives can be disappointed in the relative disregard - or undervaluation - of the importance of books that many seem to have.
Interestingly, reading in the United States has actually accelerated since the introduction of e-book readers just over four years ago. A recent Pew Research Institute survey discovered that people with e-book readers (almost one-third of Americans now have some type of e-reader or tablet) read at least nine more books annually (24) than those who read only printed texts (15).
By itself, this does not, of course, tell the whole story. For, while 72 percent of American adults told the Institute that they read at least one book last year, we do not know how many read more than one book, nor do we know whether what they read were relatively "light" or, alternatively, required greater attention and thought. Other surveys have suggested that it is really only a minority of Americans - somewhere between 25 percent and 40 percent of all readers - who devour the most books each year.
Proliferation of e-readers
I am personally quite hopeful that the ongoing proliferation of lower-priced e-readers will allow more people to encounter and embrace the joy and mind-expanding power of books. It is less important, at least initially, what they read than the fact that they are reading.
However, functional literacy is another matter. That far too many draw most of their "information" - however tainted with bias or misinformation - from some form of electronic media is not encouraging.
Americans are not particularly knowledgeable about the past, their own or others'. Nor do Americans seem aware of the nuances of multi-cultural values, nor of how various historical, religious and philosophical approaches can yield conclusions quite different from their own.
When it comes to the often-pernicious impact of computers and tablets, I am of a similar mind to your article of November 12.
Early advocates of both radio and television promised that these new media would serve to bring us all "closer together" through shared experiences and greater understanding and, further, that they would be the means by which "higher culture" could enter individual homes through stimulating drama, enlightening seminars, and meaningful entertainment.
However, it is clear that this is not how events have mostly played out. As an example, the decades-long decline in civility in America is, I believe, a direct consequence of the callous and vulgar humor employed in the lower "art forms" which daily pour into the homes of American citizens.
I fear that something similar to Attention Deficit Disorder, which afflicts so many young people from birth, is also spreading among the adult population. The ready ability of information "online"- however questionable its authenticity or validity - and the multiple sources of entertainment seem to be making focused thinking about the larger picture more difficult.
Having expressed these concerns, I must also note that the young people I have encountered in the States are actually pretty impressive people.
Electronic devices have their definite upsides because they allow people to communicate with each other in ways that my generation did not know.
Today's young also seem more tolerant of diversity, respectful of those with different ways, and mindful of the importance of generosity and courtesy.
We elders of all cultures, for the benefit of our young, have the solemn obligation to provide our youth with clear guidelines about how to live a truly good and meaningful life.
Thank you, Mr Wan, for your continued wise writing!
Sincerely,
Greg Cusack
The author has been a college teacher of American history and political science, the director of the US National Catholic Rural Life Conference; he served as a member of the Iowa State House of Representatives, and retired from public service in the Iowa executive branch in 2004. Shanghai Daily condensed article.
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