Illiterate America and Google Images

Nicholas Carr’s “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” Is about the impact Google and the internet have had on thought, primarily through how they've affected reading.  It seems to me that Carr’s answer to this question is yes.  Carr talks about how he used to enjoy delving into lengthy articles, but after his exposure to the ease of the internet, his “concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages.”  He talks about how we as people are starting to think like the internet.  People don’t read as much in the traditional sense anymore.  Now we “power browse” and we seem to try to “avoid reading in the traditional sense.”  His reservations seem to be rooted in his loss of his ability to deep read.

Ironically I noticed the impact he’s describing while I was reading his work.  I found myself continually getting distracted, and feeling tempted to just start trolling the internet.  I also have trouble deep reading, but I can still curl up with a good book.  I don’t believe everything he said is true, but I can’t argue that the way we think has changed, because of the internet.  I can’t imagine having to do research in a library with a bunch books and a big encyclopedia, but I've been spoiled by this beast we call Google.

Hedges seems to be upset with America, because he doesn't consider a large chunk of the population to be literate.  He talks about how they respond to images and emotional appeals, and make decisions without referring to any real textual information.  He considers literacy not only the ability to read, but also the “ability to think for oneself.”  He points out how presidential speeches and debates are getting progressively easier to understand, so even a 10 year old (or someone who reads like a 10 year old) can understand their emotional appeals.  I found the end of the column to be particularly troubling.  He paints a dark picture of the future of America, where this “illiterate” sect of America will become a majority.  I found his piece to be a little too negative for my taste.  I’m all for “reading” and what not, but to me this guy seems a little over dramatic.

Both Hedges and Carr describe a change in the way America is thinking, that is being brought on by a desire for information to be simpler and faster.  People aren't reading as much as they used to, and it’s having an impact.  Books stores are closing, because of new eBooks and just a general lessening of people who read books in America.  Carr focuses more on the internet then Hedges, and Hedges paints a darker picture, but they both see a troubling trend in America’s reading habits.