Saturday, August 01, 2020

Read Good Books and Avoid Television and Twitter

man in black crew neck t-shirt and gray pants sitting on black and red bench

Time to bench-press some Proust.

When you read a good novel, you are the casting director. You take what the author has given and fill in the blanks with your imagination and your experience. You are an active participant in shaping the story. You may savor words while noticing their pace and their poetry.

When you watch a good television show, your role is far more passive. For the most part, you take what is flashed before you. Even if it is a good program, your mind usually gets far less exercise. 

Twitter is like a nice neighborhood afflicted by daily drive-by shootings and mean drunks on most of its corners. There are some bright people there but you have to look for them. When found, they are often looking for shelter. 

In short, a civilized life requires a limit to TV and Twitter viewing. 

One final observation: No one ever regretted becoming a connoisseur of good books.


[Photo by Nathan Dumlao at Unsplash]

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