Ron Kurian

LIS 391

Communication Technology:

Effects on Democracy and Religion

Writing first developed in the wealthiest societies - mainly the richest and most fertile valleys. Some say writing is the most extraordinary form of technology since the influential forms were made in China, Sumeria, and Mexico. It was very difficult to create and many nations, including the Incas, were unable to develop written language. Those nations that did not develop writing kept an oral tradition and great storytelling skills. Though some scholars lament over the loss of oral tradition – claiming it was a time when societies were smaller and happiest, it was also a time when memory was very important but limited the advancement of society. Writing developed healthier, stronger brains and a sense of abstract meaning. Within social implications, writing down ideas rather than simply leaving it to memory, changes inquiry and helps create laws, records, plays, books, and more. Also, the surrounding areas with writing could establish an empire since writing was able lead to the control and domination of large lands – providing great power. Hence the reason colonialism worked so well. Writing became the foundation of empire. Another main function of writing was to facilitate the enslavement of other human beings creating an indentured or enslaved class society. Writing unleashed creativity and complex thought as seen in Athens and led to the development of experiments in democracy. Writing also provided the ability of higher level reasoning with logic and rationality which was not provided to those cultures without writing. Writing had unleashed genius in our species.

While writing led to imperialism and hierarchy, the printing press lead to the democratization of print. Politically it had brought an end to monarchies and led to the rise of personal liberties and democracies. It had created a democratic revolution. In societies where everyone can read, it is hard to deny freedom to educated and enlightened citizens and thus oligarchies had a hard time to survive. Informative pieces of information on liberty included Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” which was mass produced and sold. Citizens realized they had God-given rights that no one ruler could take away from them as the later established Magna Carta stated. It was illegal to teach slaves how to read in some lands since no one that was literate would fundamentally allow their own subjugation. Writing had decreased the gap between the rich and the poor in America during the period of Jacksonian democracy which led to universal male suffrage. Women also had fought back and demanded suffrage in a unified organization throughout America also after the majority became highly literate.

Another limitation of writing was found in the post Roman power where the written language in Europe was dominantly Latin. At the time only priests and scholars were able to read and write Latin leaving a large poor class. The printing press thus increased the power of writing for it completely opened up writing systems. Books could now be made in hours rather than in days. Before the printing press – less than 5% of the population was literate. The immediate, and some say the most significant, effect of the printing press was the Reformation. At the time, the Catholic Church was in a state of corruption and yet the printing press allowed the printing of Bibles in different languages and in mass quantities. No longer were people forced to submit to and lowly follow the ruling and religious class. One was able to own a Bible and doing so was provided with their own, direct and personal relationship with God by reading on one’s own. This led to conflict with the Catholic Church and in turn spread and developed Protestantism and other forms of Christianity. This also radically increased literacy since there was now a need to be able to read so one can learn the Bible and gain a relationship with God. The printing press had brought religion to the average person. Later TV, the next step in communication technology, in many ways cheapened religion by having one watch it through tele-evangelsim. Rather than taking part in the sacred and ceremonial aspects of religion , televised religion instead pandered to the viewers and was forced to give people what they wanted. If they needed to dance on the altar to get ratings and donations – so be it. It became a form of entertainment that simply gave people what they wanted and no longer what they needed.

Writing was an important discovery in communication technology since the nature of this technology along with the printing press influenced how our brains and our communication skills developed. It also strongly influenced the way we organize our society and politics.