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Reading and Writing, a Lost Art.
by Bradford Boisvert
An article about the decline of todays generations enjoying to read and write. I personal note about hoping that I am incorrect, and that reading and writing will some day be popular again. Today's generation of children, and young adults no longer enjoy reading a good book, let alone being able to formulate sentences to write one. I grew up in this, what we all call, Generation "X." I was among those people that thought the Atari was the best thing since sliced bread. I thought that the basketball shoes with the pump on the tongue were such a fascinating invention, and everyone wanted one. I grew up listening to music such as Warrant, Poison, Motley Crue and any other big hair, makeup wearing eighties band you can think of. I'm currently twenty-two years old. The more and more I look at today's youth, the more I think that my generation isn't nearly as bad as my parents and grandparents generations think we are. Sadly, I think that generations decline in a societal perspective constantly.
Today, children would rather see a movie, rather than read a book. Today, children no longer know how to use their imagination. They simply don't need to. Toys of today do everything for them, including walking, talking, and shooting little guns or missiles. Today's technology far exceeds what I grew up with, and certainly what my parents grew up with. Today, there could very well be a picture perfect sun shining outside, with a slight breeze, billowy white clouds, and a warm, refreshing temperature. You won't see children playing outside though. You won't see children running around with imaginary guns, or playing hide and seek. There are no children riding bikes, rollerblading, or playing sports. They are all inside, playing video games and watching television, turning their complexions an unhealthy shade of Casper. The thought of reading a book, or jotting something down on a piece of paper simply never enters their minds.
I don't know why this is, because to say so would only be speculating and my reasons would be unfounded. Personally, I think it could very well be due to improper upbringing. Most parents don't read to their children anymore. I'm not blaming the parents though, so please don't think that I'm coming down on them. In today's workplace, parents are left little time to spend quality time with their children. Today, people need to work extra hard in order to put food on the table, and a roof over their heads. I still think a lot of the problems stem from here. I remember being a young child, lying in bed with my mother and sister, and listening to my mother read from Disney books. I remember having read to me and reading myself, the childish but enjoyable sweet pickle books. I also have fond memories of my first grade teacher, having us write very short stories. I remember how much I enjoyed writing about wanting to be an astronaut. I think it was because of these people that I enjoyed reading and writing so much. It's a lost art. It's a shame that children grow up not knowing how to speak proper English or being able to put together a sentence without it not making sense whatsoever. People nowadays turn their noses up at a book, thinking that opening the pages might mean certain death. Perhaps I am a rare exception. I personally have always enjoyed writing. Or better yet, I have always enjoyed storytelling. I don't think of myself as a writer. Shakespeare, Douglass and Hemingway were all writers. To be in their league would be an honor, but I am more content being a storyteller.
I enjoy taking others and myself out of this reality, and dropping us off in some other place. To introduce a character, set an environment, pick a setting, and start the story is wondrous. I'm an escapist storyteller. I want to show people something they have never seen before. I was the world that I write to envelop their senses. I want to bring them as deep as I can, and make them forget where they really are. I certainly want the book to be more fascinating than the movie, and for people to read it like it's sacred. I've recently published my first novel. It's about a man who wakes up to a world that he thinks had been turned upside down. Each chapter that goes by, unseen forces hunt him down. The more he endures, and the stranger things get, the more mentally unbalanced he becomes. Yet, the people closest to him believe he's gone completely insane. They try and tell him that nothing he sees is really there. He thinks they are in on it though, and so goes the battle. Is he truly insane, or is the world that he knew, suddenly a different place? The further along things go, the more he wished he were insane, because the reality is far more frightening for him. Now, I think I've gotten off my main point here. Simply, what I am trying to say is that the upbringing I had, and the enjoyment the generations above me and I get from reading, is quickly leaving our society these days. The children don't, and in some cases, can't read. Without reading, I believe that they are missing out on a large amount of intelligence and enjoyment that they would not get otherwise. I'm just now starting out what I hope will be a prominent career in writing. I plan to write many more novels, with at least ten waiting to be written as I type this. I'm fearful of the future. This has been my dream and my desire since I was a young boy. All I ever wanted to be was a published author. Hopefully I can be a notable author some day. Yet I'm scared. I'm scared that if and when my career takes off, that the generation of now, will leave me with no one to read my books. If that becomes reality some day, then all I have worked for, and the dreams that I have waited for to come true, will come crashing down. Everyone deserves to live his or her dreams. I'm still scared.
About the Author
Bradford Boisvert has published one novel to date, entitled, Delirium. Delirium was published by Booklocker.com and is currently available. Bradford currently resides in Bellingham, Ma. As of this time, Brad is finalizing his second novel, Fugues, and is writing his third novel, Vicariousity.
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