"During the next thirty years I came to realize that just as there is more than one way to love a person, so is there more than one way to love a book" (Fediman 38).
I was really fascinated when I read that sentence in Never do that to a Book. I find it really interesting how two different cultures can have total different ideas and values. I mean it makes sense right, since the two countries that were mentioned in the reading are separated by thousands of miles but I just never thought a book which consist of just three things, paper, ink and the authors thoughts, would have such different values depending on where you are geographically. Now that I think about it, my culture also treats books differently. I am half Bolivian and half Salvadorian, spending my early years in Bolivia thus getting most of my values from that culture. Like many other cultures, a book to us another way of learning, going on an adventure or just simply to ease our minds. But what sets us apart from other cultures in regards to books is that we value them in a different manner. We find it inappropriate to read a book while doing other things, such as eating. It’s in our culture to set apart a certain time throughout the day to dedicate time just to reading. Think of it as if the books had feelings and along with that a jealous side which only wants to spend time with you and your mind. In a way it’s both the carnal love and the love for the words inside the book that Fediman talked about that we, the Bolivian culture, value.
-Luis Aguirre
That's so interesting about your Bolivian culture! I also find it amazing how socially different everyone's culture is and how we'd never know without the proper exposure.
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother doesn't like to do anything else while reading either, and as a child I would curl up in a corner and read for hours at a time, but now it seems as if everything we do is a multi-task!
I wish I could still have that time to devote to JUST reading, I appreciate that part of your culture .. it should be apart of our American custom too!
Luis, good post! It's really interesting to hear that in Bolivian culture, reading is done as an activity on its own! I also wish we had time each day set aside for reading. What do you think Anne Fadiman or Virginia Woolf would think about that?
ReplyDeleteLuis,
ReplyDeleteI liked when you mentioned in your post to think of a book as if it has feelings. This is very true. I am from the Czech Republic and was also taught to cherish books when I was growing up. There is no way we would read a book while eating, furthermore, not even touch the book with dirty hands. The majority of my books in my shelf had a plastic cover on to protect them from physical damage. As I grew older and got busier, I read whenever I can, which means even when I’m eating. I am realizing the love to the book as a whole has changed to the love to the words inside the book, and I take the physical part of the book as a mere vessel. I cannot imagine leaving a camping guide at home when I go camping just to protect the book from getting dirty. Such a book is my camping partner and wouldn’t want to hurt its feelings.
Hana