Journal 2: On "From Pencils to Pixels"

In Dennis Baron’s article, “From Pencils to Pixels: The Stages of Literacy Technology,” he chronicles some of the major points in the history of writing technology. He reminds readers that the first form of writing technology was actually the process of writing itself.  Before the invention of writing, there was no way to keep records of the happenings and stories of oral culture. Writing revolutionized cultures, allowing them to go from oral to literate societies.

Baron then describes several subsequent developments in writing technology. The example that most piqued my interest was the introduction of the typewriter: “…in 1938 the New York Times editorialized against the machine that depersonalized writing, usurping the place of ‘writing with one’s own hand.’” Today, the New York Times uses the advanced computer program InDesign to publish its newspapers. If a journalist turned in a hand-written story for publication in 2011, I’m sure he or she would receive some disbelieving looks or possibly even a reprimand from the edior. For that matter, a story typed on a typewriter would be just as shocking in a modern-day newsroom.

Whenever a new technology is introduced, like the typewriter, it takes time for it to be accepted by society. Humans tend to distrust new technologies, which explains the New York Times’ initial resistance to the typewriter. However, as the typewriter gained mainstream use by increasingly low prices, it became necessary to use typewriters to remain competitive in the newspaper business. As any technology becomes the standard for an industry, those who are reluctant to try the new technology are often left behind.

 The same stages of acceptance at work in the case of the typewriter apply to not only the modern era, but to all human history. When writing was first invented, there were very few people who could understand or produce it; there was an elite literate community. It was not until writing started to be used for additional purposes, such as recording religious rites, that more people became literate and writing became an accepted technology. This process repeats itself time and time again, with each new technology either adding to previous technology or replacing it entirely.

Renee Boettner