Ruth Fox's Blog - Posts Tagged "reading"
Is Reading Anti-social?
It’s been a while since I’ve updated, for many reasons, most of them involving the inevitable occurrence that always gets in the way of being creative – life.
I’ve recently started a new job, amongst other things, and it means there is much less time to devote to writing and art. The most disappointing thing about this new job is that it has very little opportunity to be creative. It has struck me numerous times that even during breaks, when people are doing nothing else, no one whips out a book and reads. There are seats set up outside the main area where people can take their breaks, but, again, no one reads.
The vast majority of my co-workers are younger than I am, but I don’t think that’s the reason. I don’t think most people of my generation would read given the choice between that and jumping on Facebook or Instagram either. Reading is an unusual pastime, and I’ve only run into people who revere books with the same fervour I do a few times in my life.
What’s really interesting is that it makes me wary of taking out a book during my breaks as well. Am I ashamed to be seen reading? No, not really. It’s more that it’s inconvenient, and would require an explanation to those around me. It might also infer that I’m an anti-social person.
Is reading an anti-social activity? I know there are plenty of people who consider texting or checking social network sites on your phone while in the company of others to be rude, but I also know that most of my friends wouldn’t think twice about it. Why is reading different?
I’ve recently started a new job, amongst other things, and it means there is much less time to devote to writing and art. The most disappointing thing about this new job is that it has very little opportunity to be creative. It has struck me numerous times that even during breaks, when people are doing nothing else, no one whips out a book and reads. There are seats set up outside the main area where people can take their breaks, but, again, no one reads.
The vast majority of my co-workers are younger than I am, but I don’t think that’s the reason. I don’t think most people of my generation would read given the choice between that and jumping on Facebook or Instagram either. Reading is an unusual pastime, and I’ve only run into people who revere books with the same fervour I do a few times in my life.
What’s really interesting is that it makes me wary of taking out a book during my breaks as well. Am I ashamed to be seen reading? No, not really. It’s more that it’s inconvenient, and would require an explanation to those around me. It might also infer that I’m an anti-social person.
Is reading an anti-social activity? I know there are plenty of people who consider texting or checking social network sites on your phone while in the company of others to be rude, but I also know that most of my friends wouldn’t think twice about it. Why is reading different?
