Post-literate society
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
(Difference between revisions)
| Revision as of 23:17, 20 July 2009 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Revision as of 21:22, 26 February 2019 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) Next diff → |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| + | [[Image:From Contes by Octave Uzanne.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Loisirs Littéraires au XXe siècle]] (English: "Literary leasures in the 20th century") from the story "[[The End of Books]]" by French writer [[Octave Uzanne]] and illustrated [[Albert Robida]]. The illustration depicts a [[female reader]] of the 20th century, imagined by Robida, who is [[audio book|listening]] to "12 poètes assortis" (twelve assorted poets) on a balcony overlooking a [[future city]].]] | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| - | '''Asemic writing''' is a wordless open [[Semantics|semantic]] form of [[writing]]. The word ''asemic'' means "having no specific semantic content". | + | A '''postliterate society''' is a hypothetical society in which [[multimedia]] technology has advanced to the point where [[literacy]], the ability to read or write, is no longer necessary or common. The term appears as early as 1962 in [[Marshall McLuhan]]'s ''[[The Gutenberg Galaxy]]''. Many science-fiction societies are postliterate, as in [[Ray Bradbury]]'s ''[[Fahrenheit 451]]'' and [[Dan Simmons]]' novel ''[[Ilium (novel)|Ilium]]''. |
| - | Illegible, invented, or primal [[manuscript|script]]s ([[cave painting]]s, [[doodle]]s, [[children's drawings]], etc.) are all influences upon asemic writing. But instead of being thought of as mimicry of preliterate expression, asemic writing can be considered as a [[Postliterate society|postliterate]] style of writing that uses all forms of creativity for inspiration. | + | A postliterate society is different from a [[pre-literate]] one, as the latter has not yet created writing and communicates orally ([[oral literature]] and [[oral history]], aided by art, dance, and singing), and the former has replaced the written word with recorded sounds ([[Compact Disc|CD]]s, [[audiobook]]s), broadcast spoken word and music ([[radio]]), pictures ([[JPEG]]) and moving images ([[television]], [[film]], [[streaming video]], [[video game]]s, [[virtual reality]]). A postliterate society might still include people who are [[Aliteracy|aliterate]], who know how to read and write but choose not to. Most if not all people would be [[Media literacy|media literate]], [[New literacies|multimedia literate]], [[Visual literacy|visually literate]], and [[Transliteracy|transliterate]]. |
| - | Some asemic writing has [[pictogram]]s or [[ideogram]]s, which suggest a meaning through their shape. Other forms are shapeless and exist as pure conception. | + | In his recent nonfiction book, ''The Empire of Illusion'', Pulitzer prize–winner [[Chris Hedges]] charts the recent, sudden rise of postliterate culture within the world culture as a whole. |
| - | Asemic writing has no verbal sense, though it may have clear textual sense. Through its formatting and structure, asemic writing may suggest a type of document and, thereby, suggest a meaning. The form of [[art]] is still writing, often [[calligraphic]] in form, and either depends on a reader's sense and knowledge of writing systems for it to make sense, or can be understood through aesthetic intuition. | + | Author [[Bruce Powe]], in his 1987 book ''The Solitary Outlaw'', had this to say about a post-literate society: |
| - | Asemic writing can also be seen as a relative perception, whereby unknown languages and forgotten scripts provide templates and platforms for new modes of expression. | + | :Literacy: the ability to read and interpret the written word. What is post-literacy? It is the condition of semi-literacy, where most people can read and write to some extent, but where the literate sensibility no longer occupies a central position in culture, society, and politics. Post-literacy occurs when the ability to comprehend the written word decays. If post-literacy is now the ground of society questions arise: what happens to the reader, the writer, and the book in post-literary environment? What happens to thinking, resistance, and dissent when the ground becomes wordless? |
| - | Asemic writing occurs in [[avant-garde]] literature and art with strong roots in the earliest forms of writing. | ||
| + | ==See also== | ||
| + | *[[Asemic writing]] | ||
| + | *[[Cyberculture]] | ||
| + | *[[Daniel Bell]] | ||
| + | *[[Film]] | ||
| + | *[[Multimedia literacy]] | ||
| + | *[[Oral history]] | ||
| + | *[[Post-industrial society]] | ||
| + | *[[Post literacy]] | ||
| + | *[[Radio]] | ||
| + | *[[Television studies]] | ||
| + | *[[Transliteracy]] | ||
| + | *[[Visual literacy]] | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Revision as of 21:22, 26 February 2019
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
A postliterate society is a hypothetical society in which multimedia technology has advanced to the point where literacy, the ability to read or write, is no longer necessary or common. The term appears as early as 1962 in Marshall McLuhan's The Gutenberg Galaxy. Many science-fiction societies are postliterate, as in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and Dan Simmons' novel Ilium.
A postliterate society is different from a pre-literate one, as the latter has not yet created writing and communicates orally (oral literature and oral history, aided by art, dance, and singing), and the former has replaced the written word with recorded sounds (CDs, audiobooks), broadcast spoken word and music (radio), pictures (JPEG) and moving images (television, film, streaming video, video games, virtual reality). A postliterate society might still include people who are aliterate, who know how to read and write but choose not to. Most if not all people would be media literate, multimedia literate, visually literate, and transliterate.
In his recent nonfiction book, The Empire of Illusion, Pulitzer prize–winner Chris Hedges charts the recent, sudden rise of postliterate culture within the world culture as a whole.
Author Bruce Powe, in his 1987 book The Solitary Outlaw, had this to say about a post-literate society:
- Literacy: the ability to read and interpret the written word. What is post-literacy? It is the condition of semi-literacy, where most people can read and write to some extent, but where the literate sensibility no longer occupies a central position in culture, society, and politics. Post-literacy occurs when the ability to comprehend the written word decays. If post-literacy is now the ground of society questions arise: what happens to the reader, the writer, and the book in post-literary environment? What happens to thinking, resistance, and dissent when the ground becomes wordless?
See also
- Asemic writing
- Cyberculture
- Daniel Bell
- Film
- Multimedia literacy
- Oral history
- Post-industrial society
- Post literacy
- Radio
- Television studies
- Transliteracy
- Visual literacy
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Postliterate society" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
