Racing through technological advancements in space, agriculture, and even artificial intelligence, our world is changing in many ways. In modern society, STEM initiatives are put in place to aid our newer generation in becoming a part of this revolution, encouraging students to deepen their understanding of technology. This shift has pushed subjects such as literature to the side to ensure that our country is capturing every bit of potential that our future might hold. In a world dominated by technology and science, society loses its moral, emotional, and historical lessons that books teach value. This inevitably allows humans to risk repeating those same mistakes driven by ignorance and shortsightedness.
Some Georgia high schools grant one free science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) Advanced Placement test. This gives students who do not have the financial means to pay for the exam the opportunity to take a challenging course. This is just one example of how schools ensure that students have the chance to grow interests in the more desired technological fields of study that help the country’s economy and world standing. So, while this is a positive thing on the surface, it comes from a selfish place underneath.
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics says, “A globally competitive STEM education system equips Americans with the skills and knowledge needed to take part in the STEM workforce. STEM workers with a broad range of educational credentials sustain the U.S. research enterprise and drive innovation in critical and appearing technologies, supporting the nation’s competitiveness in the global economy.”
These are short term benefits in the grand scheme of society. Any modern society can only get so far, but the truth of the matter is that we are all human. No matter how far a society shifts towards technology, whether a person is in a developed society or not, they are a person. This means they are still subject to being selfish, hateful, and ignorant. This is the very reason we see history repeating itself.
The Roman, Mayan, and Mongol Empires and the Qing Dynasty all eventually fell. Each believed they were above the rest because of their technological advancements. But they fell because their civilizations had become corrupt and immoral.
The idea that history repeats itself is more than a saying; it is something we can see in our own society.
Literature is the solution, The Ox Journal says, “[Books] discussing, criticizing, or simply mentioning social norms directly brings such topics to the public who may not even be aware it is an issue. Then, the said public can discuss how these tackled topics have affected them, and how to change such norms to be more inclusive for the betterment of society.”
But our society’s shift in focus has resulted in a decrease in consuming these valuable pieces of information. The National Endowment for the Arts quantifies this saying in a “Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA), conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 48.5 percent of adults reported having read at least one book in the past year, compared with 52.7 percent five years earlier,”
When society stops reading, they stop remembering. History has become a list of dates, and our progress becomes a cycle. We invent new technologies, but we repeat the same moral failures and blindnesses authors warn us about. The problems we face today, such as environmental collapse, misinformation, and inequality, are not born from ignorance, but from ignoring what we could already know. Without literature, we risk becoming a civilization that knows everything but does not understand one bit of it.
Literature is high quality and has lasting value that explores significant ideas and emotions as an art. It evokes change, makes a reader close to the book and think. If we continue to push it to the side, we risk losing not only our past, but what it means to be human. As a modern society, we must bring literature with us. Whether it is an old piece or new, the value is immeasurable. Without it, we will inevitably fail.
