The Importance of Reading Books

Denne study guide hjælper dig med at analysere Paul Fairfields podcast “The Importance of Reading Books”, som har været brugt til eksamen i Engelsk B på STX den 18. august 2020. Derudover finder du også et summary, inspiration til at diskutere og forstå teksten samt skrive din opgave.

Hvis du har brug for hjælp til Assignments 1-4 fra den skriftlige eksamen på STX den 18. august 2020, kan du læse vores vejledning her.

Paul Fairfield er forfatter og professor i filosofi ved Queens’ University i Kingston, Canada. “The Importance of Reading Books” er et afsnit af podcasten Philosophy Crush fra 11. august 2018.

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Raise awareness about the dangers of relying too much on digital technologies

Fairfield also intends to show the audience the dangers of relying only on technology as a way of life. His idea is that abandoning reading in favor of technology means abandoning “the habits that are central to our liberal education” (ll. 68-69). Fairfield also argues that this will lead to a lack of “depth” (l. 70) in our civilization’s way of living because of technology’s “claim to exclusivity” (l. 72).

Fairfield also tries to raise awareness about a supposed decline in young people’s ability to think critically. According to him, this is due to the younger generation’s decline in reading habits. Fairfield sees this as an important issue and talks about universities lowering their standards because of it (ll. 55-57). Fairfield expresses his worry that educational standards will decrease and that screen technology will not be able to replace reading with something else that offers similar benefits.