Are We Really Loosing The Ability To Read
I saw an interesting piece of writing in today's Mid Day by Vinita Kohli Khandekar, who has posed a question : are we losing the ability to read. The assertion is that digital media is making dumb dependence of all us. Many scribes challenge that no reporter can search with out Google.
In this connection, I recollect that in 2008, Nicholas Carr posed similar question in Atlantic Monthly, ' is Google making us dumb?'. He reckoned that more than 15 years of Internet had changed the way we read. The ability to dive deep into a book or an article is almost impossible even in the most dedicated readers. He said, ' we consume information in bits and pieces, skin through, speed read or power browse. But frankly speaking I can only partly agree with Vinita and Carr. In fact, people want to read, but we have to create a kind of environment.
There are two perspectives to it. The first one, world over there is a serious shift in the way people read. But it will be wrong to say that they have stopped reading. Whenever I travel abroad, I watch people reading their favourite fiction on their Kindle Book so engrossingly that they will hardly look around. Definitely, Kindle Book gives you power to carry bunch of books of your choice in this smart device, while travelling without having weight in their bag. And frankly, I have also glued to Kindle while travelling, the ease of reading gives altogether a sort of pleasure. Second perceptive : you go in any western city, you will find well stocked public libraries, and believe me these are full of inquisitive readers.
I agree with Vinita on one score, yes in our country, youth is not inclined to read at all, it is also true that in most of the colleges, you may see students chatting, sending pics or sharing jokes on their smart phones. But you can not blame them. Right from early childhood our middle class parents start making their son or daughter a sort of mugging machine. Along with school teachers as well as private tutors they ask children to do home work. They hardly encourage them to read any thing other then the course material. And after their long school hours, tutors or coaching sessions, if any time is left, it is on TV or Internet.
I ask Vinita that a an enlightened newspaper journalist, how many occasion she has raised issue of public libraries in residential areas. Is it not strange that in cit like Bombay, you may find a multiplex hardly a kilometre away from your residence but no good public library even in the range of 10 km. I feel that the scribes need to start a strong campaign to impress upon local administration to open public libraries in all residential areas. If government is not listening, each housing society should take a lead, out of the kitty called ongoing monthly charges, they should spend good money on buying books and in the evening convert society office into a library !
I have also noticed that youth has urge to read, you go to Landmark, Crossword or any such similar book shop you will find number of young people browsing, reading new arrivals in the ally or crumpled space between the book racks.
So there is a need to trigger the process, good old days of reading can be re-created.
In this connection, I recollect that in 2008, Nicholas Carr posed similar question in Atlantic Monthly, ' is Google making us dumb?'. He reckoned that more than 15 years of Internet had changed the way we read. The ability to dive deep into a book or an article is almost impossible even in the most dedicated readers. He said, ' we consume information in bits and pieces, skin through, speed read or power browse. But frankly speaking I can only partly agree with Vinita and Carr. In fact, people want to read, but we have to create a kind of environment.
There are two perspectives to it. The first one, world over there is a serious shift in the way people read. But it will be wrong to say that they have stopped reading. Whenever I travel abroad, I watch people reading their favourite fiction on their Kindle Book so engrossingly that they will hardly look around. Definitely, Kindle Book gives you power to carry bunch of books of your choice in this smart device, while travelling without having weight in their bag. And frankly, I have also glued to Kindle while travelling, the ease of reading gives altogether a sort of pleasure. Second perceptive : you go in any western city, you will find well stocked public libraries, and believe me these are full of inquisitive readers.
I agree with Vinita on one score, yes in our country, youth is not inclined to read at all, it is also true that in most of the colleges, you may see students chatting, sending pics or sharing jokes on their smart phones. But you can not blame them. Right from early childhood our middle class parents start making their son or daughter a sort of mugging machine. Along with school teachers as well as private tutors they ask children to do home work. They hardly encourage them to read any thing other then the course material. And after their long school hours, tutors or coaching sessions, if any time is left, it is on TV or Internet.
I ask Vinita that a an enlightened newspaper journalist, how many occasion she has raised issue of public libraries in residential areas. Is it not strange that in cit like Bombay, you may find a multiplex hardly a kilometre away from your residence but no good public library even in the range of 10 km. I feel that the scribes need to start a strong campaign to impress upon local administration to open public libraries in all residential areas. If government is not listening, each housing society should take a lead, out of the kitty called ongoing monthly charges, they should spend good money on buying books and in the evening convert society office into a library !
I have also noticed that youth has urge to read, you go to Landmark, Crossword or any such similar book shop you will find number of young people browsing, reading new arrivals in the ally or crumpled space between the book racks.
So there is a need to trigger the process, good old days of reading can be re-created.
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