The Invention of Writing - Essay Example

Writing is the Most Important Invention to the Development of Global Civilization When examining the two inventions: writing and the wheel, in order to decide which was the most important to global civilization, we must look at the interdependence between them. The wheel was, indeed, an important mechanical invention, without which migration and trade would be painfully slow. However, without the invention of writing, we would have to keep reinventing the wheel. The wheel allowed us to transport goods and people from one location to another. Writing allowed us to transport ideas from on place to another and also from one time to another. It is the method by which we transmit ideas and it is an extension of the human brain which enlarges upon the function of language. Dr. S.I. Hayakawa said in “Language in Thought and Action that language was an extension of the brain and allowed humans to work as a group. Using the nervous systems of those around us, we have the benefit of everything the others see , hear and know. Example: shouting fire tells everyone in earshot that there is danger, allowing them to escape. Writing is an extension of the function of language over space and time, allowing us to ”remember” as a species and to build upon the knowledge of all those who went before us and wrote their ides down. “In the ancient tradition of the Chinese, the Egyptians, and the Babylonians, the invention of writing was made by divine beings. It is natural that such a remarkable possession of man should have been regarded as something beyond his unaided powers of creation, and especially so at a time when the gradual development of writing from its early pictorial form was not understood. But there is another reason for putting a high value upon the art of writing, though it is one that could hardly have been properly appreciated by the makers of the fables. It is that writing is pre-eminently the art of civilization. Indeed, it has made our civilization possible--not only by permitting the existence of a highly developed literature and science, but by playing a vital part in the reorganization of society which produced the complex states of ancient and modern times. Both public and private life are profoundly changed by its acquisition. Without it we could not have risen far from a condition of barbarism. “ (Moorehouse, A.C. 1953) “History in its broadest sense, is the story of humanitys past. It also refers to the recording of that past. The diverse sources of history include books, newspapers, printed documents, personal papers, and other archival records, artifacts, and oral accounts. Historians use this material to form coherent narratives and uncover linked sequences and patterns in past events. Most histories are concerned with causality, that is, why certain outcomes happened as they did, and how they are linked to earlier events. “ (Columbia Encyclopedia 2005) Winston Churchill once said, “Those who do not remember history are destined to repeat it.” Imagine the bulk of oral history that our sages would have to memorize if we could not write it down, if we even remembered the most important events. Of course, there would be a lot less to remember without all the inventions and intellectual discoveries and creations that would never have occurred without the invention of writing. Another notable scholar, though self-taught, was Abraham Lincoln, who wrote, “When writing was invented, any important observation, likely to lead to a discovery, had at least a chance of being written down, and consequently, a better chance of never been forgotten; and of being seen, and reflected upon, by a much greater number of persons; and thereby the chances of a valuable hint being caught, proportionably augmented. By this means the observation of a single individual might lead to an important invention, years, and even centuries after he was dead. In one word, by means of writing, the seeds of invention were more permanently preserved, and more widely sown.” “The worlds progress is due largely to inventions. Whenever a new method, machine, or gadget is invented, it helps humankind to live a little easier or better or longer. Bit by bit, inventors add to wealth, knowledge, and comfort. Inventors work with known things and known principles. They combine these in a different way to make a new product or process. A discovery differs from an invention. A discovery is something found in nature that was previously unknown. A new chemical element is a discovery; a new type of engine is an invention.” (Encyclopedia Britannica On line 2006) Considering that the invention of the wheel and of writing were fairly close together, one can guess that the various uses of the wheel were recorded, and, so, if you were to consider that the invention of the wheel was more important to global civilization, you would have to consider how much writing contributed to the development of this invention and its various uses. After all, the first documented use of a wheel was for potting, not transportation. Yes, it is true that the wheel is an intrinsic part of many important modern inventions, but many of them would never have come to be if previous uses had not been recorded in writing. Looking back at history, we would have none of the works of Aristotle, Plato or Socrates and their contemporaries without writing. Truly, some would have been passed down in oral history, but much would also have been lost. All the really important philosophers and inventors depended upon what they learned, and most of those who contributed greatly to modern life got their education from books. We must include philosophers in this group, because philosophy is merely unproven science. While it is a theory, it is philosophy. Once it is proven, it becomes science. All the really great philosophical, mathematical and scientific inventions of the past ten thousand years depended upon someone or something which went before, in that the inventor was educated by means of books. Everything in our modern world is dependent upon records. We need records for laws, for religion and culture and, most important, for education. In colonial America and Canada, the only books were the bible and small little “chapbooks” , usually made on leather. Education was slow and tedious. Today we have the collected knowledge of the world at our fingertips by virtue of writing. In fact, the very process of invention often depended upon writing, in that inventors built upon the work which went before. Encarta Encyclopedia says: “Invention (device or process), creation of new devices, objects, ideas, or procedures useful in accomplishing human objectives. The process of invention is invariably preceded by one or more discoveries that help the inventor solve the problem at hand.” (Encarta Premium on line 2005) While it cannot be denied that the invention of the wheel was extremely important to the development of modern global civilization, in that goods, services and people could be transported around the world, most authorities agree that writing allows us to transcend time in addition to space. A “major step in the history of communication was the invention of writing, which may be considered as the graphic record of the spoken word, enabling us to receive messages regardless of space and time. The importance of writing can hardly be exaggerated.´(Burgleman, Jean Claude 2000) The very fact that answering this question requires the use of written literature in a final bit of proof that the invention of writing was more important, perhaps the most important invention of history, though the wheel and the printing press run a very close second place. 1. Moorhouse, The Triumph of the Alphabet: A History of Writing (New York: Henry Schuman, 1953) 178 2. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright© 2004, Columbia University Press. p-22151 3. Basler, Roy P. Ed. 1953, The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, The Abraham Lincoln Association 4. "invention." Britannica Student Encyclopedia. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service. 12 Mar. 2006 Read More