A Better Pencil

Plato believes that "writing can never be as real as speech." As someone who expresses themselves better in writing than verbally, I would have to disagree with Plato. Although writing is not as direct as speech, I do believe that it is just as real, depending on who is doing the writing. For example, if I am texting someone and trying to work out evening plans, I will eventually give up and call them because it is easier and more efficient to speak to each other rather than write everything out. However, if I am in a fight with my girlfriend and want to explain how I feel in a non-angry or emotionally charged way, I often write it all down in a letter and give that to her. Writing is both as real, and not as real as speech. Much like speech is both as real and not as real as writing. It is interesting to note the major shift that has occurred, from trusting orality explicitly, to trusting writing explicitly. We used to trust someone's word, that when we looked them in the eye, and shook hands on a deal, that they would follow through, because guilt weighs much. Nowadays, we would much rather have something in writing, to legally document that an event occurred. This shift seems connected to the idea that everybody lies, and we can't trust word of mouth. With all the technology around us, it is even more difficult to tell the difference between a truth and a lie. With photoshop, internet magicians, CGI, etc... etc... it's no wonder that we have difficult trusting anything. However, it is easier to have things in writing/digitally, because if, later, we find out it was faked or a lie, we have evidence to support our innocence, and can pursue legal justice.

In chapter 3, the author talks about Henry David Thoreau, pencils, and a distaste for technology. It seems that when a new technology arrives, people often look at it with either fear or distaste, because it is new, and they will have to learn it. We are nostalgic beings, and thus equate what is best with what is easiest. For example, when I have a particularly tough week at school, I find myself longing to be back in high school, where things were easier, everything was straightforward, and little was expected of me. My parents grew up with pencils and pens and wrote everything down. So they may look upon computers with distaste, because it is difficult to learn, and when they think about times in their life that were easy, carefree, and fun, they think about their childhood, when they used pens and pencils. They are comparing two distinct times, one which has been glorified in their minds, and one which has been horrified in their minds. It's difficult to compare two things when one's imagination has already played tricks on what they both are. This idea is reiterated in chapter 7, where the author says that "texts generated by new technologies are often greeted with mistrust by readers preferring the old, tried-and-true to the newfangled" ones. We rely on what we know to work, and prefer to stick to what we know to be safe. I do believe that this concept is fading, however. Since I was born, computers have gone from large bulky things to Google Glass. I have been raised with so much technology that I am accustomed to changing out my devices every few years and can quickly pick up on new technologies with ease.

I am a big fan of the phrase "word technologies" that was introduced on page 71. It makes a lot of sense to me. The author talked a little bit about how all word technologies fail at crucial points: the pencil breaks, the typewriter jams, the computer freezes. However, one could say that speech is the one word technology that doesn't fail. Most people will never experience a failure of the tongue, more likely a failure of the mind, which feeds the tongue. But the tool that we use to speak will not suddenly stop working like we want it to. An interesting concept that reminds me of Orality and Literacy: at the end of time, when technology is dead, pencils are gone, and paper is scarce, we will still be speaking to each other.

Should everyone be writing? My teacher friends would argue that yes, everyone should be writing. And I agree. Writing is an excellent outlet for one's thoughts, feelings, ideas, etc. However, writing is also a way of garnering attention, destroying others through online bullying and anonymous comments, and creating a fictionalized universe that is not healthy to live in. I think that everyone should be writing, but it is important to self edit, and only share that which is worth sharing.