A Writing Technology Created in the Kitchen
Our class was given the task to come up with an original writing technology that is not using the technologies that we are so used to; that includes pens, pencils, paper, etc. This project turned out to be a little more difficult than I first thought it would be. After the assignment was given I attempted to think of how I could do this without using any type of technology. Technology is everywhere. It is amazing how dependent our society is on technology and how often and readily we use it. We take for granted everyday how easy we have things and years ago things were totally different. This assignment caused me to take a step back and try to think of how things would be if we did not have all the technological advances that we have.
For my writing technology I decided to use some of the things that I found around my kitchen. There are so many things in and around a house. It is not until you have to use them for something other than their everyday use that thinking about them becomes difficult. I wanted to make something that would stick and have a bit of substance. I decided to use flour and water to make a thick paste. I know that flour goes through a process to get to my kitchen but again, just about everything now has been through some type of technological process. After I figured out that I wanted the paste I could not think of anything to use to make the words. I thought about cutting up a banana to spell out something but I figured it would smell after a few minutes. I also thought about using an orange or an apple, but again I changed my mind. While searching through the refrigerator I found a pomegranate and used the seeds and placed them in the paste to make them stick. The paste sat in the refrigerator overnight so it could become a little more adhesive and hold the seeds without them sinking inside or rolling around. The next morning I used a knife to cut open the apple and pulled out all the seeds. I arranged them in a fashion to spell out the words that were on my mind at the time.
This assignment showed me a great deal when it comes to writing and how useful the tools that we use daily are. I only wrote three words. “It’s cold outside”. It took me a lot longer to write those three words with pomegranate seeds than it would have taken me to write an entire page on the computer with my fingers and the keys. Every letter had to be arranged accordingly and neatly versus just hitting a key and the letters pop from behind a black vertical line. Even when manuscript is used with a pen or pencil the letters and words come from the ink or pencil. It is an amazing thing when one really thinks deeply into it. Without these tools at our fingertips it would be quite difficult to communicate in any way other than orally because writing would take so much time. Without the speed of the internet or the simplicity of paper and ink writing would be almost impossible. People probably would not even want to do it because of the length of time it would take to formulate one word. The world is all about speed now.
In his article, Ong states “To understand what writing is, which means to understand it in relation to its past, to orality, one must honestly face the fact that it is a technology.” (39) Ong hits the nail right on the head with this one. If someone says that they do not use technology and they do not want to take part in any type of technology, nine times out of ten they are lying to themselves or whoever they are speaking to. The use of writing requires a tool of some type and has to be taught. Writing is definitely a technology. Everything that we use to send out messages, say hello to a neighbor, is a technology if it is anything other than spoken language. As basic and simple as we may think a pencil is because it is made of lead and wood, a pencil is a technological advancement. The paper that we so easily pull out of a notebook to jot down a simple not or phrase goes through an entire process to get there. Technology has gotten us to where we are right now and technology will continue to improve our lives.
Technology is created to make the lives of those who use it easier. Without technology, one could not simply click a button and send a message to the other side of the world, books would not be here, and writing a simple love letter would be impossible. With every passing generation comes a new technology and something new to get used to. When writing was first developed it received mass amounts of skepticism. Plato states “writing is simply a thing, something to be manipulated, something inhuman, artificial, a manufactured product.” (Ong, 37) Those thoughts hundreds of years ago in relation to writing still exist today in reference to computers and all of the new tools which are invented daily.
Looking at writing as a technology puts a lot of things into perspective for me. I was one who loved to hate computers. I get frustrated easily and just sometimes want to throw my computer out of the window. This assignment made me realize just how much better the world is because of computers. I would never give up my computer for a typewriter and I would hate to not have the luxury anymore. Life is all about change, growth and learning about the new and unknown. That related to the world of technology as well. Technology is changing right now and it is going to continue to change. The best way to get used to it is to simply accept it. Ong reminds us “The use of technology can enrich the human psyche, enlarge human spirit, set it free, and intensify its interior life.” (39), I agree.
Works Cited
Cushman, Elein, Kintgen, Eugene K., Kroll, Barry M., Rose,
Mike, Eds. Literacy: A
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