In libris libertas

The need for artists to express themselves is as old as humanity.  From scratches and drawings on stone, to a banana duct-taped to a wall, those fortunate enough to have been born with this gift have shown the rest of us that the mind is a beautiful and powerful thing.  Not all of us have the inclination, but we can appreciate it, or not.  That’s art.  

For the longest time, reading was an art form restricted to those who were wealthy enough, (or lucky enough), to have received some sort of education.  Although the global rate has been rising over the last 200 years, it was only in the mid 20th century that it began to take off, rising to 42% in 1960, and to 70% in 1983.  Today, roughly 9 out of ten people above the age of 15, are literate, albeit the rates still vary according to the region of the globe where you live.  Undoubtedly, the onslaught of the personal computer was a contributing factor in boosting literacy, although the implementation of school systems, especially for children, was probably the number one factor.  

Reading, without a doubt, is one of the best ways to escape into one’s own imagination.  To a place where we decide what will be, and where we will go.  Some of the greatest minds that ever walked among us have left records of our history and how they saw it.  Others have left us guides to their realities, that differ little from our own.  Then there are the sciences, without which we would never move forward as a species.  These are all powerful tools to aid us in forming our thoughts and conclusions.  It’s this reality that those who might be seeking to control our lives are afraid of.  The burning of books is a long-standing tradition; look it up at the library.  Groups seeking control of the masses often resorted to the burning of wisdom and the vilifying of its teachers.  Some of the worst perpetrators were, (and are), those doing it in the name of a deity.  Another cool thing about reading is the solitary aspect of the act.  There’s no screamer telling you what’s ‘right’, no mob influence, no liars.  You may not share the same point of view with what you are reading, but you’re allowing yourself to ‘listen’, and you have plenty of other material to leaf through, in the quest to develop your mind.  And this poses a conundrum for certain politicos and wealth hoarders; an informed public can’t be duped that easily.  Of course, burning books is somewhat obvious, so some have brought back book ban.  They believe that telling history like it actually was, smudges the image they’re going for; ‘We must look forward, not behind us’.  So much for learning from our mistakes.  Then there’s social media with its reels and stories, loaded with opinion and devoid of much of the truth, where we all get bombarded with whatever they want us to see.  Yes, it’s quicker and visually entertaining, something many of us have become addicted to, and they know that.  Currently, that is their ace, the one thing they know we can’t resist, but it doesn’t have to be like that.  It seems that people are waking up to these facts, and demand for books is on the rise.  Here in Portugal, book fairs are all the rage, with more and more cities and towns putting them on, and we’re just a little country, so there is definitely an upward trend.

We may have underfunded educational systems, but they’ll never be able to keep us from books.  They’re not the answer to everything, but they sure are a great vehicle to get you there on your own.

Fiquem bem,

Raul Freitas/MS