Is it fatal attraction or addiction or both? Screens of various shapes and sizes are taking control of most people -- not just the young generations but even adults and senior citizens of society. People who are professionally highly busy can count themselves lucky because their occupations hardly leave much time to unnecessarily spend time on the screen. But there are multitudes of people who lost touch with books and they are least concerned if they do not have a look at the daily newspapers. Some go through the e-papers as a pastime only.
The way screens are shaping minds is highly concerning. It is not only because cheap, hollow, frivolous, concocted and fully fabricated contents are dished out on the social platforms but also because people get snared in the colourfully presented trap. Gradually people get adapted to a virtual world far removed from the reality. The analytical mind and logical discourse within continue to get blunted and the general run of people get carried away, losing the sense of proportion.
Sure enough, it is the smartphone that has wreaked havoc with the mental makeup. Many people may not have enough money to manage some vital essentials for their families but somehow they can procure the data to drive their passion for the ill-conceived and distorted contents on various social sites. Even toddlers have developed fascination for the screen courtesy of their parents who tend to divert their reluctant-to-eat little ones' mind in order to feed the latter. This habit stays with them. Some of them start playing apparently innocuous online games only to develop addiction for highly pernicious, ugly and physically revulsive types of such games.
There is a clear indication that device addiction has been responsible for a sudden social more, particularly during and after the Covid-19. Of course, there are people who made the most of the time by reading those books they could not go through during their busy working days. Here is a twist to the tale. The average American reads 17 books a year, followed by the Indians who read 16 books each year, the British follow with 15 books with France and Italy following close by with 14 and 13 respectively. Although a 2021 UNICEF/BBS survey found that 82.31 per cent Bangladeshis read books, it should be taken with a grain of salt because the survey was conducted among a select group. Moreover, most of the young adults read science fiction and action thriller.
A study by researchers at the University of Nevada and the Australian National University found Estonia as the most bookworm country. The Estonians own 218 books on an average at home and 35 per cent of them own 350 or more in their families. Yet it is the Russians, 90 per cent of whom read books. Their love for classics makes them different.
The message is clear: reading books and device development can also make strange bed fellows. If Americans still read the highest number of physical books, it is clear the country that has taken computer and smartphone technologies to a new level has not parted ways with the reading culture. The Indians have a long tradition of reading books. But France's 4th position is somewhat surprising. What is particularly remarkable is that the United States of America also produces the highest number of books driven by its robust book industry there.
True, in a country like Bangladesh where the literacy rate is a controversial 76.8 per cent, has its various limitations. Even functional literacy is not enough for igniting minds to read books. It falls short of developing a love for reading habit. There is the question of financial ability to purchase books. Libraries were once considered a rich treasure trove of knowledge and not only in urban centres, they were found in villages. The reading habits of the leading nations confirm that reading books or launcing a library movement can get over the awful addiction with the screen.
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