I'm not sure that we can quite compare writing that's directed for things like mass publication with sites like blogs, twitter, and the like. Most actual literary or scholarly writing takes place with forethought and the goal is more to offer information. I don't read a novel or an article for the simple sake of responding to it. Many times I'll read something for fun or to gain a new perspective on a specific topic.
Places like twitter, facebook, and social networking sites offer ideas from people who are putting their voice out in public for a variety of reasons - few which are to actually teach anyone anything. In most cases it's to directly get feedback or start a discussion, or simply to let people know what color socks you've decided to wear. It's a way for people to communicate and attempt to relate in a world where we're segregated from other people because of the capitalist hustle and bustle of what's expected of us.
In a world where we call help lines to talk to computers, see the ATM machines more than our kids, and play games with digital characters, the common language is going to be through computers. However, I don't think that because it's common that it is a good and sustainable practice. It may be good on a personal level for someone to blog or offer updates to people who don't care, but that doesn't mean that it can replace everything else that we should be doing on a social level.
At the end of the day, I'll curl up with a novel or something else that I can take the time to read for me and get a thousand times more out of than a site that lets me know that my aunt is having a good hair day.
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Diversity of reading and writing experiences is good and should be encouraged, which I sometimes worry might be getting lost in some positive affirmations of online writing. However, why don't we do more to encourage others to use Facebook, Twitter, etc., in deeper, more productive ways? If we can/should do this, what might it look like?
ReplyDeleteI like that you have an opinion on this. I agree to some extent that readers will choose what they read and for what purposes. What I like about online/social media is that it provides all different tones, perspectives, viewpoints, etc. on different subject matter. It also makes it easy to review and discard what you don't want to continue with or choose what youa are interested in. Again, it is a new medium but also changes the way people gather and sort through information that may or may not be relevant to them.
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering how you feel about Amazon's Kindle or about ebooks. Would the use of technology change the way you curl up on the couch reading? Regardless of the content you are reading, I think technology is kind of jarring from what we have been so used to: the written word on paper. The literary world is moving away from this tactile medium whether it's a "green movement" or an issue of convenience and I wonder how it will change our concepts of enjoying a novel overall.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of Kindle or ebooks, if only for the sake that they make books more available in a general sense. My trouble is that if I look at a small screen for too long, my eyes start trying to claw their way out of my head. I play Playstation Portable and Nintendo DS, and even with their screens I can only use them for short periods of time. I can't imagine spending hours on end reading a novel on such a screen.
ReplyDeleteBut I think there's a distinction between what we read as far as articles or books and what we read on Facebook or twitter. Sure it's information, but is it truly useful information?