I have always been critical of journalists. These delightful heralds, I tell you, how they love to cast stones from their glass houses! They point their fingers at the world but conveniently skip over the mirror. Do they ever self-reflect or critique the organisations they’re working for? And the cherry on top? Their incessant lectures on ‘critical thinking’. I mean, look at the audacity! The same goes for every self-proclaimed critical thinker, be it the journalist, the academic, the philosopher or… wait a moment!
Then it struck me. While I’ve chuckled at my quirks as a writer, have I ever questioned my writing seriously? Sometimes. But have I questioned the very act of writing? That’s hard to remember. So, much like those journalists, I’m just being pretentious, urging everyone to hone their critical thinking when, to quote Jordan Peterson, my own house is not in order.
Maybe it’s time to write a critique of writing.
Enter the scene: Plato, that bearded guy everyone likes to quote to make a philosophical point. He suggested art imitates reality and takes us away from it. I am sure, the same could be said about writing as well. Isn’t the written word an imitation of thoughts and ideas? Let’s start from this point and delve deeper.
Echoing Echoes: Reading a piece of writing is like hearing someone describe a story they heard from someone else. We lose touch with reality. Think of a religious person who keeps obsessing over the images or words of god, but has lost contact with the very essence of it.
Set in Stone: Truth, according to Plato, likes to move and dance. When spoken, we can two-step with it. When written, it’s like that guy who stands still at a dance party. Awkward!
Lost & Not Found: In Phaedrus, Plato hints that writing makes our memory lazy. I’m certainly a card-carrying member of the forgetfulness club, and I bet I’m not alone. It seems literacy came at some price to the human species.
One-Way Street: Plato loved a good chat, where ideas bounce back and forth. Writing, on the other hand, is not meant for the faint-hearted. It lures you into a quiet corner, then leaves you chatting with your own shadow.
Lost in Translation: A frequent complaint you’d hear these days is how a certain book or scripture got twisted in its meaning. That’s the double-edged sword of writing! It’s all too easy to get the wrong end of the stick, leading folks down some unexpected paths.
To all the writers currently having a mini heart-to-heart with the cosmos: Relax! This is just a critique of writing. For every critique, there’d be an ode somewhere too. And let’s not forget, Plato wrote a lot of stuff himself. His words have survived, helping so many of us, even today.
So, let’s keep writing! And remind ourselves: Every now and then, a sprinkle of introspection goes a long way.
Kalampedia 