Give Me Literacy, or Give Me Death

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Something written text possesses that other medias of information tend to lack, whether spoken or shown in person, is the striking detail that can be included. Many people prefer books to movies for the amazing detail that can be enclosed when depicting a story compared to a movie, where many of the same details are overlooked or not included for various reasons. Written text allows the reader to progress at their own pace, allowing more freedom and enjoyment from the task. While reading to learn can be a very useful, people more commonly read for leisure as opposite to burying their head in a core concept textbook. Novels and poems can immerse the reader and evoke emotion without any physical representation of what they are experiencing. The brain forms its own idea and perception of what it is reading, which can make for much more enjoyable, creative adventures. With just a few pages and a skilled author, it is possible to transport to another time, place, or even dimension depending on one’s choice of text. Reading and writing contribute beyond the learning of information, allowing an array of experiences through reading for leisure, or allowing the creation of one’s own story.

Shown through history and our own experiences, reading and writing is an everyday tool we often take for granted. Illiterate populations often have a drastically lower quality of life than those of developed societies where literacy rates are higher. Written text has allowed for the mass spread of messages, access to information never available before, and the freedom to seclude one’s self from the world and immerse him/her in an entirely alternate reality. Without the ability to read or write, the world as we know it would be incredibly different. Therefore, I encourage all who are able to take advantage of this gift of human advancement for the purpose of sharing their experiences, learning new ones, or just creating their own for their personal enjoyment.