Every time the monthly "discourse" roles around as to whether consuming audio books counts as reading, I cannot help but think of the Odyssey, of the Iliad, of the Shakespearean plays. Works of art that have become solidified within Western Canon as some of the greatest pieces of literature we have. And all of them were mean to be heard, to be watched. Were crafted for it.
The Iliad and the Odyssey were meant to be listened to from the mouth of a bard, a lyre in his hand and a song on his tongue, as the smoke from the fires drowned out the rest of the world, the honey words transporting the audience into the story.
Shakespeare was meant to be watched. The actors bent over themselves, emotion pouring down their faces as the audience bumped shoulders with each other, breath held for the next act.
I love the written word, do not get that wrong. But we owe the written word to the oral tradition. To the bards and poets who passed down story after story, who kept them alive to the point where they could be written down and preserved. We owe it to performance. To the energy of the theater that found the plays that sparked electric in the peoples hearts, to the point of ensuring they would be around for generations to come.
Why disparage the performance of a story, when it might just be the most human thing we have? Why act like it is an inferior art form? I adore reading, but I also know that my favorite pieces of literature were meant to be heard.
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