I recently read the following in a story about someone arguing against the benefits of new media:
“..your affection for it has made you describe its effects as the opposite of what they really are. In fact, it will introduce forgetfulness into the soul of those who learn it: they will not practice using their memory because they will put their trust in [the medium], which is external and depends on signs that belong to others, instead of trying to remember from the inside, completely on their own … Your invention will enable them to hear many things without being properly taught, and they will imagine that they have come to know much while for the most part they will know nothing. And they will be difficult to get along with, since they will merely appear to be wise instead of really being so.”
Three questions:
- Do you agree?
- Which media platform was this person talking about?
- Who said it?
3. Socrates. 2. Writing! 1. I believe it is a valid concern but fails to see the immense benefits the medium brings. Same with the internet today.
Right you are, Andrew. I found this a good reminder of how people of all periods of history struggle to get their heads, hands and hearts around the potential practical and normative outcomes of socio-technical shifts.