In Nicholas Carr's The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains, he introduces the concept of our writing utensils changing how we write. I find this concept to be intriguing as I don't necessarily understand why a change in writing utensils would drastically affect how we write. I personally don't notice any drastic change in my writing when I write on a computer or on paper, seeing as I, like many other people around my age am accustomed to writing on both. Perhaps I would notice a change if I were to write only on my computer instead of on paper or vice versa.
I believe that the most notable instance of this phenomenon was in the switch from people dictating passages to scribes to writing passages down by themselves. I believe that in this instance a change was bound to happen because writers were able to write down more personal experiences without recounting them to a stranger. I don't see why your writing style would change when transitioning from pencil and paper to typewriter or computer, other than the fact that with either the typewriter or computer you can write faster than with pencil and paper.
In my opinion, I think that people where thinking excessively about the effects of new devices such as the typewriter or computer/word processor on our writing styles.
What is your opinion on this topic? Do you think that our writing tools affect how we write? Or do you think that it is a misconception?
-Jacob Ruvalcaba
I agree that I don't really see a change in my writing wither I'm writing on paper or typing on the computer. I think it is just the person itself actually. Some may be more comfortable on writing on paper or rather just type on the computer. Personally, I would rather write on paper since basically I've been writing on paper for everything all my life and haven't really gotten used to typing on the computer yet.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sammantha when she says that it depends on the individual whether or not they see a change. Personally, when I write in pencil on paper, all my words just flow without me thinking too hard about it. When I type on a computer I feel as though I pay more attention to what is sitting there on my screen. With it all in front of me, I constantly reread lines and struggle to find the perfect wording for everything. Just having all my work staring back at me from my screen makes me analyze it more then I really should. I feel like my writing on paper has more flow because it’s coming straight from my head to the paper with no hesitation. I definitely think out what I want to say more precisely when I type rather then freehand.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting idea by Carr. I don't write any different than I type. It feels different writing with a variety of tools though; with a pencil I feel like a journalist/analyzer, with a pen I feel professional, and with a keyboard I feel hasty. What is noticeable from my experience is that writing uses more brain power to complete compared to typing; this sounds weird but I will try to explain. When typing all I think about is the task of my assignment, as for writing I focus on the task of my assignment and my penmanship. Hopefully at least one person understands this weird explanation of mine.
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