The Evolution of Readers and Writers

Allison Proehl

Professor Leake

WRIT

My target audience is to an older generation that doubts the credibility of the current generation.  Basically it’s a plea/argument to get men and women to understand that my generation is not, as perceived, the dumbest generation.  Today’s generation has adapted to the technologies of this decade and I’m attempting to convince the reader and older men and women that we should not be measured against what other decades considered to be ‘literate’.

The world is changing and the way we read and write about that world is part of that transformation.  Technology has created an entire generation of readers and writers who generate anywhere from short updates about his or her day to lengthy essays about current events.  Students are furthering their education—maybe not in the traditional style but according to Sylvia Scribner, Clive Thompson, and Andrew Sullivan technology has not only changed what we are reading as a generation but they also note it is adding to the amount that society is writing.   By embracing the information that is readily available, today’s generation is furthering their reading and writing skills like never before.

The free flow of information that is available on the Internet has revolutionized the way society interprets and responds to information.  Because of the modernization of technology and thus the flow of information, it would be assumed that the procedure for measuring literacy should be updated to fit society.  However many critics argue that the way for measuring literacy should be the same as it was back in the 1900’s.  Literacy is defined as the quality or state of being literate, especially the ability to read or write with synonyms for the word listed as learning and culture (CMS).  I bring up the dictionary definition of ‘literacy’ in order to draw attention to the ‘quality’ and ‘state’ of being literate as well as a synonym for it as defined as ‘culture’.  Literacy is defined by the culture it is surrounded by—our current society is not the same as the one in 1920.  The way we share information cannot accurately be compared to any other generation and thus it cannot be fairly measured.  “Definitions of literacy shape our perceptions of individuals who fall on either side of the standard (what a ‘literate’ or ‘nonliterate’ is like) and thus in a deep way affect both the substance and the style of educational programs” (Scribner 6).  We are defined by how society perceives us—however accurate or inaccurate that may be.  If today’s generation is the be measured up to the old standard of literacy then the millions of Facebook posts, Twitter updates, and blog readings most likely would not be considered to be a beneficial to a person’s literacy.  However when considering today’s generation you should also consider the type of media and texts men and women are constantly surrounded by.  Society may no longer be reading “War and Peace” but society is reading millions of smaller pieces every second via the Internet.  The standard for measuring literacy should be altered to today’s generation and how men and women read and write with modern technology.  By taking into account the current means that information is available by, it can be seen that today’s generation is increasing men and women’s reading and writing output tremendously.

Society has changed—the technology created in the last 10 years alone, has revolutionized how men and women read and write.  Facebook updates, Twitter posts, and blogs have virtually replaced handwritten letters and newspapers, and the circulation of information is only a click away.  The current generation constantly circulates information and incessantly is responding to what is going on.  “The first thing she (Andrea Lunsford) found is that young people today write far more than any generation before them. That's because so much socializing takes place online, and it almost always involves text” (Thompson 1).  It is almost impossible that anyone in today’s generation isn’t swept away by some type of social media.  Consequently it is very rare that individuals in society can avoid reading or writing something on some type of website.  It is well know that Facebook alone has over 800 million users who on average spend 700 million minutes per month on Facebook (Facebook Statistics).  And that’s only looking at Facebook.  With outstanding numbers like that for one site, it can be assumed that other sites like Twitter, Blog Spot, Wikipedia, Google, and YouTube hold millions of readers and writers as well.  Today’s generation is not taking the Internet for granted, they have transformed into a society that uses the Internet to read and write in a revolutionary way.  From the Internet comes instant publication that wasn’t possible a decade ago.  Those short Twitter blurbs and Facebook wall posts are instantly globalized and are available to anyone with access to the Internet.  Because of this instant publishing Internet users are swayed more and more to continuously update the world on all his or her doings.  “This form of instant and global self-publishing, made possible by technology widely available only for the past decade or so, allows for no retroactive editing (apart from fixing minor typos or small glitches) and removes from the act of writing any considered or lengthy review. It is the spontaneous expression of instant thought” (Sullivan 1).  This spontaneous expression has led to the increase in writing as discussed by Sullivan.  Society is allowed the opportunity to express their immediate feelings to a situation and have it be available to other readers within seconds.  In the past, information was ‘slow’ and edited—there was no candidness to newspaper articles or news reports.  Internet posts, like blogging are instant and without any real hesitation.  “No columnist or reporter or novelist will have his minute shifts or constant small contradictions exposed as mercilessly as a blogger’s are. A columnist can ignore or duck a subject less noticeably than a blogger committing thoughts to pixels several times a day. A reporter can wait—must wait—until every source has confirmed. A novelist can spend months or years before committing words to the world. For bloggers, the deadline is always now” (Sullivan 2).  The same can be said for Facebook posts, blogs, and Twitter updates—there is no delay period for any of these types of media outputs.  That is what draws the user in—instant gratification.  From the combination of readily available information, social media websites, and instant gratification today’s generation is drawn in and has continued to read and write incomparable to any prior generation. 

Reading and writing as it once was known has changed forever.  Today’s generation is built on a platform of social media websites, endless information, and a desire to post every detail of our lives.  Literacy has changed, from its definition, to the way it is measured, to how society currently uses it.  However you look at it, it is impossible to ignore the fact that society is reading and writing at a rate that has never been seen before.  With the development of newer technologies comes the evolution of readers and writers everywhere.

                                                       Works Cited

Chicago Manual Style (CMS):

literacy. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/literacy (accessed: January 30, 2012).

Facebook Statistics. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Feb. 2012. <https://www.facebook.com/‌press/‌info.php?statistics>.

Scribner, Sylvia. “Literacy in Three Metaphors.” American Journal of Education 93 (1984): 6-21. PDF file.

Sullivan, Andrew. “Why I Blog.” The Atlantic. N.p., 18 Nov. 2008. Web. 7 Feb. 2012. <http://www.theatlantic.com/‌doc/‌200811/‌andrew-sullivan-why-i-blog>.

Thompson, Clive. “On New Literacy.” Wired. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2012. <http://www.wired.com/‌techbiz/‌people/‌magazine/‌17-09/‌st_thompson>.