The written word, while very much a rewarding and worthwhile pursuit, is not the only mode of storytelling and never has been. Not only that, but with our current technology, we have only increased the modes of storytelling and communication.
The idea that books are a superior medium is frankly an antiquated concept. That is not to say they don’t have value or that their value has deteriorated over time. It is to say, though, that they are no longer the main form of entertainment in our current society.
I love reading, and I always have. It is one of my favorite pastimes, and when I read, movie scenes play out in my mind, almost like magic. Now, we can present those scenes in the form of movies. And that is a form of storytelling that takes just as much work as writing a book, if not more. Describing characters, clothing, settings, colors, lighting and sounds is an art form, but literally designing and creating the sound, cinematography, costumes and sets for movies, plays and television shows takes an incomparable amount of work. The sheer number of people required to make a movie could take a good ten minutes of the allotted screen time for the credits to roll by.
Before movies, we had theater, concerts and radio. Any form of media that involves the written word as a language is often imperative to communication, but at times I get frustrated because I have such a clear image or story laying out in scenes in my mind that I struggle to find the words to accurately convey it to others. Picking up a paintbrush or a pencil is oftentimes easier.
The technical skill required to really tell a story in any form of media is not something to be taken lightly. We are often taught the skills for analytical writing, but not the ones for creative writing – not unless we actively seek it out. I must acknowledge my bias: I have been trained in techniques for fine arts starting at 5 years old. For me, I can more accurately relay a scene through a painting than a piece of prose.
Many people who prefer to read literature in their free time see their interest as superior to other interests. Since writing is considered more academic, professors and writers like to sit in their ivy-covered towers (their offices on the second floor of crumbling buildings), casting judgement on those who do not share their enjoyment of literature. There is definitely snobbery in the art world as well as in the world of literature, but it stems from the breadth of interpretation of its meaning rather than from the presumption that art supersedes all other media.
Even historically, there were always artists. People who write songs to tell their stories and people who put brushes and paints to their chosen canvas show their stories.
Walk with me: when people write, especially creatively, they are attempting to put an image or series of images in their reader’s mind. When people make movies, paint pictures or create any other form of visual media, they are literally presenting their audience with images.
To borrow an old adage, a picture is worth a thousand words; so why is the medium that relies on words held to the heavens as a shining example of the best we have to offer?
I love the privilege of the autonomy to imagine the story when I read, but I also love having it spoon-fed to me when I watch movies. I love being wrapped up and enveloped in a world that is not my own. I would argue that is the purpose of all art: to wrap you up in other worlds, expose the similarities between your world and the world these artists and writers created, find the familiar in the unfamiliar and expose universal truths through specific experiences.
