Books are in for a hard time. Good books face the threat of extinction, or maybe a few are already endangered. The time before they turn obsolete and perish altogether is very less. Seems there are new rules and standards set out. And those who are not aware of them, or stubbornly chose to stay unaware, will be in trouble. It's raining change.
I was having a deep discussion with fellow books at the Central Library in Bangalore last Sunday. These are long established, cliched, prosaic and ancient books. Books that had earned credibility for exhibiting fearless writing and built diligent reputation for fine book-man-ship. Books that were respected and looked upon for ages together.
All of a sudden, these same books have fallen prey to modernity (in what-so-ever-context it may be). They faded off to sleep while I was still talking to them. They seemed in serious urge to switch from their signature style to something more profound (Apparently, in their context). They said they had become cheaper, devalued version of themselves. But isn't this a contradiction? This is nothing profound. Why had they degraded their own positions? The answer they gave me was this- 'A Harsh reality check, my friend'.
What had made them alter from being so premier of such brilliance, admired by all, to delete-able, erasable and disposable reading instruments, downloaded at the app store or down the internet and labeled 'free download'?
They told me in utter seriousness and frankness that in order to survive in the invisible ignorance fallacy, they had to adapt by leaps and bounds. I questioned the oldest book if this change was any good and out came a wise reply, 'The stench of failure should not depress you. Just like the laws of nature, we need to modify ourselves, even though it was the man kind to be blamed rather than nature.'
However, the youngest of all seemed more excited about the changeover than the resentment for losing the original identity. He told me, 'Nobody keeps track of how many books are stacked up the book shelf now. Nobody is horrified when the pages get damaged or worn out with time for they have a quick remedy. They could look up the internet and find the same content, simplified, abridged, in different fonts and sizes or download it as when they require it and migrate it to the trash or recycle bin when their work was done.'
Maybe the times had changed. Maybe the good books were narrowing down, day by day, noticed by a few and unnoticed by many. Maybe this change isn't for the good. Maybe like all other endangered flora and fauna, they need to be conserved.
All of a sudden, these same books have fallen prey to modernity (in what-so-ever-context it may be). They faded off to sleep while I was still talking to them. They seemed in serious urge to switch from their signature style to something more profound (Apparently, in their context). They said they had become cheaper, devalued version of themselves. But isn't this a contradiction? This is nothing profound. Why had they degraded their own positions? The answer they gave me was this- 'A Harsh reality check, my friend'.
What had made them alter from being so premier of such brilliance, admired by all, to delete-able, erasable and disposable reading instruments, downloaded at the app store or down the internet and labeled 'free download'?
They told me in utter seriousness and frankness that in order to survive in the invisible ignorance fallacy, they had to adapt by leaps and bounds. I questioned the oldest book if this change was any good and out came a wise reply, 'The stench of failure should not depress you. Just like the laws of nature, we need to modify ourselves, even though it was the man kind to be blamed rather than nature.'
However, the youngest of all seemed more excited about the changeover than the resentment for losing the original identity. He told me, 'Nobody keeps track of how many books are stacked up the book shelf now. Nobody is horrified when the pages get damaged or worn out with time for they have a quick remedy. They could look up the internet and find the same content, simplified, abridged, in different fonts and sizes or download it as when they require it and migrate it to the trash or recycle bin when their work was done.'
Maybe the times had changed. Maybe the good books were narrowing down, day by day, noticed by a few and unnoticed by many. Maybe this change isn't for the good. Maybe like all other endangered flora and fauna, they need to be conserved.
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