I wonder what F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose quote this is, would make of the ever-increasing level of connectivity we have these days.
When you ask writers, especially those over 35 or so, why they write, often they trace it back to the joy they got from reading when they were children. For many, including me, it was an escape from some difficult family circumstances.
Often it was, as Fitzgerald pointed out, a book that made you suddenly realize that whatever your problems, somebody somewhere else had them, too. And if it was an especially tough day, taking up residence in a fictional world for a few hours was a gift. Having valued the shelter of books, we want to extend it to others.
Increasingly, though, kids are turning to different ways to feel connected. A Pew Research Center survey in the US in April-May 2011 found that 83% of Americans own a cell phone, and the average user makes 12 calls a day and sends 41.5 texts--but that's for people 18 or older.
A similar study in 2010 focused on teens and found that 75% of them have phones and one in three sends more than 100 text messages a day.
They also are avid users of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. These can be used to bully kids who are different as well as to provide solace or connections but I'm certain they help more than they hurt.
Can a writer still serve this function? Of course--kids are still reading. But if we revisit this topic in ten or even five years, I wonder whether Fitzgerald's quote will seem more quaint than relevant.
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