The Changing Spaces of Reading and Writing

Text is a Stimulant

Picture 11

In its most basic state, I see text as something designed to induce a state of mind both when text is created and when it is consumed. Marks are applied to a surface and visually consumed with the intent of inducing an awareness of something else apart from the awareness of the mark itself.  That’s an amazing head trip.

Text stimulates us to see our minds reflected back into space and thus, compared to early primal humans, gives us this out of body experience of who we are.  To early humans, consuming text would be like taking peyote buttons.

Reference:

Image uploaded by Arenamontanus on 11 Dec 08, 2.00PM PDT on Flickr.  Modified by Drew Murphy.

1 comment


1 Diddly { 09.15.09 at 2:11 pm }

Great Idea and great image.
Before written language, people probably sat around the fire telling stories and consuming them. It seems that you are including orality in text and I tend to agree with you.
Dilip

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