The New Dark Ages
The Death of Reading and the Dawn of the Post-Literate Society
Failed to add items
Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.
Add to basket failed.
Please try again later
Add to wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Remove from wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Adding to library failed
Please try again
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.
The New Dark Ages
Pre-order Now for £12.59
-
Narrated by:
-
By:
-
James Marriott
Summary
The beginning of the modern era saw the widespread adoption of new printing technologies that allowed the written word to spread far and wide. It's not by chance this period also saw the rise of revolutions and the decline of the aristocratic order. For the first time, a critical mass of people could share and debate ideas about individual rights, the purpose of government, and scientific truth. With rising literacy came the world we recognize today.
Now, around the world, the number of people who read is in free fall. Literacy is declining or stagnating in most developed countries. University students are unable to read the books assigned in their classes. The golden chain of knowledge linking reader to reader through the centuries is breaking for the first time since the collapse of the Western Roman Empire ushered in the Dark Ages. In The New Dark Ages, London Times columnist James Marriott argues that this is the most important cultural shift of our time. The age of print is giving way to the age of the screen. The world we knew is passing away and nothing will ever be the same again.
Marriott gives an impassioned attack on the trivial culture of the screen and a defense of the written word and long-form argument. Drawing on history, media theory, and sociology, The Dawn of the Post-Literate Society argues that reading and writing are essential for innovation, creativity, and complex thought. Above all, the culture of print is critical to the functioning of modern democracies, which require their citizens to grapple with ideas at length and in depth. As print dies we risk returning to the chaos, tribalism, and rage of the world before widespread literacy.
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_c
No reviews yet