Why is there a loss of interest in reading?

I live in California, and I know very few people here who actually enjoy reading, especially if they're high schoolers. Why? And I very rarely consider romance actual reading; mostly they're fluff, excluding classics like Jane Eyre or Austen. It's not that people can't read, it's just that they honestly don't enjoy it. One reason is, I daresay, that they don't think there would be material they like. I know for a fact that this is untrue, because I have a friend who didn't read a lot because she didn't know what to read. Between me and the library, she found a niche. What is behind it all? Is it really because of video games, cell phones, ipods, computers, etc.?

For me, to not like reading is unfathomable. There is sooooo much to be found in books, it is incomprehensible to dislike them, especially considering that there is something for everyone. If I with my notoriously eclectic tastes can find enough material, then so can anyone else. :crash:

Really? There are very few people that enjoys reading? Are you sure? This is Lit-Net, you know.:D

In California, I mean. Excluding you, of course, Neo, and my fellow lit-netters. Incidentally, are there a lot of Californian bookworms around here? I'll say beforehand, I'm proud to be a part of the same community.

I think it has to do with all of the distractions out there... reading is probably the least rapid method of entertainment. A

Most people i know consider reading as a boring habit. A reason for this i believe is that they have identified reading with school. Moereover reading is a process which needs some brain effort (and power). Well it's not like watching tv.

I honestly think that people just can't be bothered to read. Sitting quietly in a room and actually concentrating on something they perhaps don't get straight away is considered boring. A lot people think that if something is a little bit difficult to understand then they can't be bothered to try, unless there is some obvious and visable reward for doing so.

There never have been all that many people who enjoyed reading. There are many alternatives, and humans are desiged to take in words by hearing more than by seeing, so auditory stimulations is more popular.

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Originally Posted by manolia

Moereover reading is a process which needs some brain effort (and power). Well it's not like watching tv.

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It's precisely that. Kids think they get enough from learning at school, they can't be bothered to actually concentrate and learn something of their own accord, it really does take too much effort. Same reason as why the History or Discovery channels aren't as popular as brain-dead American sitcoms or an awful British soap (which I'm far more liable to watch, I'm lazy too...to a certain extent). Learning requires effort, and people are lazy, it's understandable. The benefits of reading are deemed worthless or too difficult to achieve, and for example, even though excercise requires effort, it is still more popular than reading etc. as it offers a superficial benefit.

Television. Also I would add that reading isn't perceived as "cool" now a days. If you look at the popular books, you will realize that the bulk of them really aren't that well written, or that they really don't have much to offer. I can't understand why people would read that stuff, but they do.

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Originally Posted by F.Emerald

It's precisely that. Kids think they get enough from learning at school, they can't be bothered to actually concentrate and learn something of their own accord, it really does take too much effort. Same reason as why the History or Discovery channels aren't as popular as brain-dead American sitcoms or an awful British soap (which I'm far more liable to watch, I'm lazy too...to a certain extent). Learning requires effort, and people are lazy, it's understandable. The benefits of reading are deemed worthless or too difficult to achieve, and for example, even though excercise requires effort, it is still more popular than reading etc. as it offers a superficial benefit.

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I agree. Reading good books does demand quite a number of brain cells.
Don't diss sitcoms though: I love those:D

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Originally Posted by andave_ya

I live in California, and I know very few people here who actually enjoy reading

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andave I am in your exact position. Fellow Californian here who shares your exact sentiment. I don't know if anyone here reads. I think the reasons everyone has given are good ones. Especially here in CA, people want things faster, and that includes their entertainment. Books take too much time...

I think California (last time I checked) was 49th/50 in education. I don't know if that has anything to do with it, I am just speculating.

Glad to know there is another reader here...I think all of them reside here on LitNet. :D

I teach high school and it's terrifying how little the kids read. One look at their written expression immediately reveals that they've read very, very little. There's a lot of factors behind the decline in reading, but I think the primary one is that it's "work" - at least in terms of what it requires your brain to do. A good chunk of "screen entertainment" does not require your head to work like reading. In fact, reading is probably one of the most congnitively demanding things you can do. For practiced readers, reading may not seem like that much work - but for amatures? Yeah, it's tough. I'm really concerned because literacy is disappearing from our culture - kids don't have that catalogue of ideas and expressive tools that earlier generations had.

The end is near: repent (or better yet, read).

While I don't like Harry Potter, I think that the series has definitley done some good in getting kids to read. Maybe if there where more books of that ilk, kids would read more and would subsequently continue to read as adults. Is it a pipe dream? Maybe. But it's also a possibilty. The Harry Potter books alone can only do so much in getting kids to read, but it's a start.

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Originally Posted by metal134

While I don't like Harry Potter, I think that the series has definitley done some good in getting kids to read.

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I agree. But generally I think reading has never been at the forefront of 'trends' or habits of the 9-20-something age group. Not enough instant gratification :p (If one reads too much they can get labeled 'weird' or anti-social by their parents or peers :rolleyes: )

Yep, I live in California too. But, honestly, loss of interest in reading isn't just a problem in California, but probably the entire country....It just so happen that California seems to be much more worse than the other states.:p

I remember while I was back in high school...I love reading and still do...But the other folks in school was like, "What? You like to read? What are you? Crazy?"

Then there was the work involved with reading, most students just want to get it over with. While I was analyzing and trying to understand to work of poets, writers, and such, the other students was willing to pass with a "D" or "C" grade.

It was very disappointing to hear my peers say such things as "It's just a stupid poem" and "Aww, man...It's my turn to read?"

Very disappointing...:(

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Originally Posted by Logos

I agree. But generally I think reading has never been at the forefront of 'trends' or habits of the 9-20-something age group. Not enough instant gratification :p (If one reads too much they can get labeled 'weird' or anti-social by their parents or peers :rolleyes: )

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Good point! My friend told me once: Go and ask your imaginary friends! Before 10 years, It could hurt me...

At least LitNet allows people who do enjoy reading communicate. 8) I think the decline in the popularity of reading can be observed not only in California or the States, but all over the world. I tottally agree with the abovementioned ideas that people want to get information fast. Цell, nothing to do really, we can't blame them...can we?

You said it, Neo. It's awfully disappointing. You can't even get people to enjoy reading aloud, to pretend vaguely that they are actors. I love it when my mom lets me read something out of a book to her. I'm not an actress, but usually when I read out loud I'm comfortable with the characters; they have a voice of their own, and I try to project that in my reading aloud. Not to mention, there is the joy of sharing something memorable.

Yeah, sometimes reading can be a difficult. My favorite series of books is difficult to read. Whenever I read it, I feel like I have to roll up my sleeves and get to work, but it is seriously gratifying, regardless of work.

Anyway, my "imaginary friends" play a large part in my life still. They aren't Johnny and Susie and Lily anymore though, they're "Lord Peter," "Harriet" "Dorothy L. Sayers" (she's an author, though), the Lord of the Rings characters, etc. Thankfully, I don't need to say anything in their defense. They can stand on their own two feet. :p

I have always read a lot since I was very young, and this really helped me with the school and relationships at large.Books give ideas to think of, they build your creativity, they teach you how to express yourself while speaking or writing....But all my friends and classmates (well, not all of them, but most of them) didn't like books at all.
I have to admit that now that I'm attending high school I read much less than before, because we are loaded with homework and tests....

Anyway, I think the loss of interest in reading depends a lot on the kind of person you are. I myself remember I started reading with Paperino(Donald Duck), because I wanted to. And then I started asking my parents for books to read, because I felt like it.
While my best friend, who has been attending my same schools since we were 3 years old, couldn't even finish the first book of Harry Potter (which I like and find quite entertaining).....that's because she has a lot of interests but she doesn't like reading!
So,I guess this is the point.

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Originally Posted by Redzeppelin

I teach high school and it's terrifying how little the kids read. One look at their written expression immediately reveals that they've read very, very little. There's a lot of factors behind the decline in reading, but I think the primary one is that it's "work" - at least in terms of what it requires your brain to do. A good chunk of "screen entertainment" does not require your head to work like reading. In fact, reading is probably one of the most congnitively demanding things you can do. For practiced readers, reading may not seem like that much work - but for amatures? Yeah, it's tough. I'm really concerned because literacy is disappearing from our culture - kids don't have that catalogue of ideas and expressive tools that earlier generations had.

The end is near: repent (or better yet, read).

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I teach high school English, too, and I'm pretty new at it; still, I can't believe how poorly some of the students read. And their comprehension? That's another horror story. There have been alot of viable reasons put forth here about why it's so (I think it has alot to do with our society's insatiable need for immediate gratification -- and reading is something that has to be stewed over a little bit, so it just doesn't fit), but anyway, the bigger question is: What are we going to do about it?

Forget just reading literature -- many of these students CAN'T and DON'T read anything. In my opinion, it's a national crisis. How can anyone hope to live a 'normal' (perhaps that's a poor word choice) life if they can't even read?

We read aloud often in my classes, I offer strategies for different types of/reasons for reading, and I check comprehension as much as is possible - with all the other things I'm required to do. Somehow, though, it's just not enough. I get so concerned about this...

I think that the love for reading has to start at an early age. I've always loved reading, and other people I know who have also read since infancy, seemingly, either still read a lot or would like to do so. If kids found good literature and enjoyed it, there'd probably be a lot more readers today.

Agreeing with most of the folks here, it really is discouraging to have already read most of the books I'll be reading in my senior year of high school (I'm currently a junior), while all my classmates read Sparknotes while muttering about how stupid a book is.

I think a lot of it has to do with Americans especially being so damned addicted to sound bytes, cell phones, texting (cant even be bothered to spell out the words or use proper grammar), magazines, and trashy romance novels. I mean, we want it, and we want it now, and we don't want to have to think too hard about it. It's depressing. I think a lot of it goes back to the "No Child Left Behind" movement. I mean we have dummied down our curriculum to the point that if you have a workable brain, you never get challenged. My friends used to think I was crazy. I mean how can a person read for pleasure, ugh! Unthinkable. Television and I hate to say the Internet have made our attention spans less and less. People don't want to have to work for intelligence anymore. They want it at the end of a search engine or in "easily digestible" forms like talk shows and dramadies. It's scary. Also I think that we have let our minds turn to mush, because we cannot retain information anymore. One of my former co-workers, a girl of 16 years couldn't even tell me who the president of the United States was, or who gave the classic "Four score and twenty years ago" speech. It's embarassing what our school system has done to American kids.

This problem upsets me as well. I'm in high school, and I know almost no one who enjoys reading books or even anything anymore (aside from the teachers). There isn't even a Lit Club or a Book Club in my high school, and that should say a lot.

For the most part, I think that the loss of interest in reading nowadays, especially in my generation, could be attributed to the fact that we're basically living at a technological age. People want to obtain and do things faster without having to work much, and the faster the better. It seems as if if time and effort and brain cells are needed to accomplish a task (as in reading), people either abandon it or search for a faster alternative. Take sparknotes.com for example. The site provides all you need to know summaries and analysis on certain books, and frankly, it's the easy way out for my fellow classmates who are too lazy to read in English class.

If the decline in reading continues, the future of my generation is going to rot. http://www.planetsmilies.com/smilies/sad/sad0020.gif

As my philosophy teacher once told me "If you want to be a rebel, forget the drugs, just read"

Very interesting discussion.:thumbs_up

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Originally Posted by manolia

Most people i know consider reading as a boring habit. A reason for this i believe is that they have identified reading with school.

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I think you hit the nail on the head there. Schools all over the world often make that same mistake: They try to force feed the students with literature (as well as many other things), instead of sparking interest and enthusiasm... I can remember a school mate of mine saying: "Oh no, here comes another book. It's not that I mind reading the thing, but why can't they just let us read it for the sake of reading, without all those tests to prove that we understood it right when we're done?". In spite of being a keen reader myself I have no problem understanding what he meant: Force feeding is not likely to spurn an apetite, is it?

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Originally Posted by JBI

Also I would add that reading isn't perceived as "cool" now a days.

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I don't think it ever was... How many of you have been sneered at as "bookworms"? I certainly have. Doubtless, you also know that readers are boring, have no friends (which is why we have to resort to reading), and generally no life. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Adudaewen

My friends used to think I was crazy. I mean how can a person read for pleasure, ugh! Unthinkable.

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You got it. I once told a person about how much I read and how much I like it. She just looked at me and said "God, your life must be boring"... She actually felt pity! But look at it this way: If you are not a reader - How could you possibly fathom what those of us who do read experience? It's like describing colour to someone who was born blind! :brickwall

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Originally Posted by Adudaewen

As my philosophy teacher once told me "If you want to be a rebel, forget the drugs, just read"

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What a thoroughly insightful comment... I can only agree.

/Claes

Schools are probably in an invidious situation. They have to produce literate people so I guess they over test understanding. However if the breakthrough to literacy comes early in a child's life then there is no reason why even the 'drudgery' of school literature cannot be enjoyed. For then it is no longer drudgery but ever expanding enlightenment.
Parents should read to their children. We were brought up in a Sabbatarian household and between church services consumed literature like little piranhas - all of us and that has stayed with us no matter what walk of life we found ourselves in.

It really is sad that more people do not enjoy reading. What is even sadder to me is when adults pass on their aversion to reading to the younger generation. Several people have told my children that they hate reading and that they see no reason to do it. This doesn't help me in my quest to get my children to enjoy reading...not to mention that they have to do it for school. It's really hard to get them to read just for enjoyment

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Originally Posted by ennison

Parents should read to their children.

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I totally agree. My mom used to read to us every night, from books like Black Beauty, Grimm's Fairy Tales, The Hobbit, and scores of others. She also made it a really big deal to go to the library. We went twice a month, and I remember looking forward to it so much that I was literally shaking with anticipation when we pulled up in front of the library. I hope to pass that love on to my kids.

I have just a couple of things to add; there are some very good points in this discussion. I wonder what effect the misconception that we are living in "the information age" has on the reading of good books. I say misconception because I've heard countless times that everything a person could possibly want to know can be found online, or on tv, or in some other easily digestible form of media, and this is simply not true. There are myriads of books that are not to be found online, whether for the reason that they are under copyright, or that they simply have not yet been transcribed, and these all contain incredibly valuable information, not to mention entertainment, that is just not available anywhere else. Yes, I agree with the point made in several posts that we demand information fast, but I think this idea that everything is indeed at our fingertips also contributes to the view that discounts the value of reading.
I'd also like to say that I was totally appalled, when I started college, at the number of entering students who actually could not read. I've taken a number of English type courses, and they all require some bit of reading out loud, and it's just amazing to me when a college student stumbles over every other word, sounding out countless words, and mispronouncing a majority of them, or simply gives up half way through a large word. I don't understand it. I know I'm attending a back-water college, but come on! This definitely is a problem.

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Originally Posted by PeterL

There never have been all that many people who enjoyed reading. There are many alternatives, and humans are desiged to take in words by hearing more than by seeing, so auditory stimulations is more popular.

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Originally Posted by Logos

I agree. But generally I think reading has never been at the forefront of 'trends' or habits of the 9-20-something age group. Not enough instant gratification :p (If one reads too much they can get labeled 'weird' or anti-social by their parents or peers :rolleyes: )

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I agree with Peter and Logos. What makes people think there has been a decline in reading? Is there some statistic out there that says this? When I was growing up, I was the odd ball that read. Most others didn't except for school.

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Originally Posted by ennison

However if the breakthrough to literacy comes early in a child's life then there is no reason why even the 'drudgery' of school literature cannot be enjoyed. For then it is no longer drudgery but ever expanding enlightenment. Parents should read to their children.

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Well said. For as long as I can remember, I have had this craving for reading. I also know where it came from: My parents read to me... ...and I started reading to my daughter while she was still in the crib, before she could even say a single word. She is now a bookworm (not to mention writer: she keeps writing ever longer stories) of the first order, and it makes me very proud. She has in fact asked me to help her write her first posts here at LitNet: Her english is not so hot yet, but she has seen me posting here... :thumbs_up

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Originally Posted by melissapurcell

What is even sadder to me is when adults pass on their aversion to reading to the younger generation.

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Yes, that is so true, and not only when it comes to writing.

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Originally Posted by Adudaewen

She also made it a really big deal to go to the library. We went twice a month, and I remember looking forward to it so much that I was literally shaking with anticipation when we pulled up in front of the library.

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Yes! :thumbs_up I hear you. My parents did that to me, and I passed it on to my daughter. Every other week we go there, and then come back home with a couple of bags worth of reading matter. :lol:

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Originally Posted by Virgil

I was the odd ball that read. Most others didn't except for school.

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You too, eh? I recognize that, but then I never tried to follow the flow anyway... :lol:

/Claes

Its funny, but I taught myself to read at the age of four with the help of the 'Electric Company' show. I had a father that was an english teacher and a mother that was passionate about reading and patient with my questions...I attribute my love for reading to them both, and my heart goes out to those that don't read. Bless my parents.

I've always read to my boys and have always gone by the motto that you can never have too many books but the process of going from me picking out what to read and they picking out books for themselves was a hard transition for my oldest. He would just be overwhelmed at the choices at bookstores or the library so I would go through and pick out a handful I thought he might be interested in and he would make the choice from there. Eventually, he found authors and series that he really liked and was able to pick out his own books but it does show that while reading to your kids when they're babies and toddlers is great, parents need to continue to nurture and sometimes guide them throughout their formative years.

Now all they read are mangas. I realize it does still technically count as reading but I really do wish they would read more classic fiction now and again. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Idril

Now all they read are mangas. I realize it does still technically count as reading but I really do wish they would read more classic fiction now and again.

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Don't worry: I'm sure they'll widen their views again. Perhaps the manga is here to stay, but manga, cartoons and more "traditional" kinds of literature are not mutually exclusive... There is room for all of it.

/Claes

TV is easier :(

A lot of people are asking this same question. As a secondary school English teacher and a recent graduate, I know that this is a big concern. In some circles it is the teachers who are blamed for the problem. As some of you mentioned, the tumble in literacy is not limited to California.
You have already touched on many of the reasons commonly given: too much else to do, boring school reading assignments that turn people off to reading as children, laziness (I don't necessarily agree with this one), etc.
I'm in my 50's and when I was a kid there were many fewer entertainment options. We had less money, one TV in a household and I watched what my parents wanted to watch. Reading, I think, had a higher status back then. Mom and Dad pushed it because they believed it made one "educated", higher class and cultured--unlike many of them, but something they valued for our sakes. A poor a kid like me could travel via reading to many places he or she could never dream of going in real life, I know I did and it was one of reading's biggest attractions for me.
Some people blame the "Canon" for the problem--(boring?) books written by white men--long ago--no longer relevant and not originally intended for children in the first place. At school we learned about alternatives, adolescent lit., well written books that today's kids can relate to. We also learned about graphic novels (like Comics) and Manga, which are very popular--think Heros. When I began teaching in New York, I found these books were already commonly in use, and the kids seem to enjoy them for the most part. We also have many new ways of engaging students in reading that take some of the drudgery out of reading by returning to the aesthetic qualities, the love of a good story, beautiful prose, imaginative and thought provoking ideas, reasons that atracted most of us to reading in the first place. Since the visual arts are predominant today, we can tie reading to film, TV, and other Media.
I hope this is a good direction. By the way, some people are also asking if reading is dead or dying because of today's technology. We have audio books now. Why read if a book can be read to us?
Whatever--I will always love a good book, one with pages I can turn and passages I can return to and savor again and again. We will always love stories however we access them.

loss of INTERST IN readind..oh boy..i gotta long list thn..
firstly
TV
Myspace
Facebook
hangin' out with frnds
Mall
g.f or b/f
lack of interst
understandin power
bouring book/novel
buddies
weekend fun:)
other work
job
n
also wal-Mart shopping
heh heh last but not least
SLEEPING

THIS R ALL DE REASON OF LOSS OF INTEREST IN READING..

Don't forget Youtube.

Though NONE of those are a valid reason for neglecting literature.

My mom always read to me and I always read to my children -- and as a teacher now, I can almost tell which of my students didn't have that pleasure ever. So, I sneak in 'choice' every chance I can (around the required curriculum); I just let the students choose a fiction or non-fiction book to report on (including contemporary young adult literature - which I really promoted... some of it is quite good). Still, for some it went over like a lead balloon. I won't give up, though. I think of myself as one of the last people they'll encounter who will promote reading and, at the very least, attempt to ensure literacy for these students. And I often read to them, too. And sometimes, I bring a few of them in that way.

Strangely my parents were among the sort that never read to me. Growing up, I don't think I can recall one time that they had. Perhaps my interest in reading grew from my idea that higher class people are well read in literature. I attribute this to my societal conflicts with the current teen-age culture, and it's pathetic image. My interest in history led me to the realization that teenagers really aren't as different as modern day people perceive, and the fact that it is the media, and the way society has matured that has lead to what I understand to be "the decline in proper culture".

Towards my teen years I pursued this idea, and determined to digest as much famous literature as possible. This led to an obsession which brings me to where I am now. When looking back I have no regrets. Watching movies just doesn't compare to the enjoyment of reading an excellent piece of literature.

Perhaps now one reason people, younger people in particular, aren't reading is because of the stuff that hits the best seller lists. My interpretation of this fad of mediocre novels hitting the big time, is that now people are led to believe that this is what reading is really about. My interpretation of those authors, who may perhaps have excellent stories, is that they really don't cut it in terms of language, style, and the overall eloquence of the craft. When choosing to watch the movie adaptation of a crummy book, or read the book, I personally would choose the movie; whereas a book may take hours to read, the movie takes only a couple to a few hours. Better off watching a movie of rubbish than dedicating time to reading it when you can be enjoying something of a more intellectual nature.