Patrick Nulty
Riversdale CC
The creation of language and the expression of it through writing is
surely the most profound and essential ingredients of human experience.
Early forms of writing were in the form of hieroglyphics that told the
story of Mankind's struggle to tame himself and his environment. As time
passed language developed and great civilisations in China, Greece and
Rome developed alphabets and structured ways of expressing language. This
natural progression of the evolution of writing led to the creation of
the book where stories of fact and fiction (sometimes both) were put down
on paper and recorded for all time.
Today there are numerous alternatives to the book as a means of communication.
The technological revolution of the twentieth century has brought about
dramatic changes in society. The mass media, in all its forms, has increased
in power and influence. Radio, television, computers and now the Internet,
have made communication across the globe instant, and the transfer of
thoughts and ideas faster and more efficient. Not since the invention
of the printing press in 1456 when Johann Gutenburg printed copies of
the bible has there been a bigger revolution in communications technology.
Despite these apparent threats to its future I do not believe the book,
which has for centuries passed on the thoughts and ideas of our civilisation
from one generation to the next, will become redundant. However I do think
the traditional notion that everything will be recorded on paper will
change somewhat.
In education for example, computers and disks will be used to store information
and will replace the traditional textbook. In the business community financial
transactions will continue to be done electronically at an ever-increasing
rate. Government departments and financial institutions will depend more
and more on computers as an efficient means of storing information.
The book will not disappear. Great works of literature both new and old
will continue to be published and the traditional pastime of reading a
book will not change. In fact, book sales have never been better throughout
the world. This increase in popularity may continue as people use computers
and other forms of technology to such a degree in their daily lives that
the informal and personal feeling associated with reading a book become
more and more valuable in the computer age.
In conclusion, although the book may cease to be used for recording information
it is far from being dead. It will still be a source of entertainment
and will continue to function as a form of interpreting our world and
advancing ideas.
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