Writing: The Catalysts of Civilizations

ElangNurramadhany

As I sit on this curved white chair reflecting upon my feats, I’ve realised most of them have
been written achievements; textual and in black and white. My relative articulacy in both
Indonesian and English is the only skill that I can depend on completely (aside from my
natural charm); my only tool of the trade, writing has carried me far in life. It has given me
opportunities far beyond what I had imagined as a child. Friends were made, competitions
were won, and status was raised. Had I not been given the gift of textual eloquence…I don’t
think I would be where I am in life today. In all likelihood, without this skill I have acquired
through arduous means, I would have stranded myself on a mediocre state-owned school,
where creativity is doomed to dull and perish. Due to the successes I’ve received thus far, I
would like to dedicate this essay on the significance of mankind’s greatest achievement to
date.

Writing.

The written works are mankind’s timeless testaments to how we have developed substantially
over the past thousand or so years. They are proof that we have learned; that we have sought
for knowledge all these millennia. For instance, this essay that the reader is hopefully
enjoying is my testimony that from the day I walked through the doors of kindergarten up
until now, I have developed intellectually. Let the fading keys of my keyboard witness my
determination.

For a moment, let us reflect upon all the great achievements mankind has made thus far. To
pierce through the heavens and conquer the lunar surface of the Moon, to glide and soar
through the sky with aerial grace, rivalling even that of the most dexterous birds of prey. To
save millions of lives by crippling death himself, then fashioning him in a syringe. To create
a worldwide network of which international communication is made possible, and accessing
the most intricate of information can be done in mere minutes. Would all this be achieved if
notes were not written, if thoughts were not recorded, if results were not chronicled? It would
have been quite problematic if the only probable method of conveying information was orally.

Writing is the one and only reason mankind has managed to gather all the knowledge we
have at present. The flaw of oral language surfaces when death comes to us all, that or when
memory fails us; unlikely the words passed by one person are the exact same as previously
passed. Misconceptions are bound to happen. We also cannot disregard that there exists a
limit to the quantity of knowledge we can hold, and fathom within our heads. One may
bypass this limitation through writing, of which information may be eternalized through the
ages, requiring not the strong memory of a man with photographic memory to chronicle it all.
There have been many instances where classical works of literature affected the world
positively. For instance, the many thinkers of Ancient Greek had a plethora of knowledge as
contribution to the world; Euclid and his compilation of mathematical works creating
geometrical system, or Archimedes with his many grand legacies that most middle-schoolers
have studied about, such as Archimedes’ Principle, regarding buoyancy.

Or explore the Canon of Medicine written by the revered polymath Avicenna, which
remained a medical authority for centuries, and a standard for Medieval Europe for just as
long. It spearheaded the development of modern medicine and is still an interest of today’s
physiologists. Let us not forget the great contribution of Galileo and Copernicus in delivering
a fatal blow to the Church’s Aristotelian view at the cost of putting their lives at stake.
Without Copernicus’ De RevolutionibusOrbiumCoelestiumor Galileo’s Dialogue, would it
have been possible for the masses to realise their mistaken belief of the Earth’s centricity (or
lack thereof)? It would have taken much longer for us to completely grasp the role of the Sun
without these admirable scholars to lead the way to modern science.

With the importance of writing throughout history in mind, I would like to delve deeper as to
why writing is essential in our day-to-day life.

Writing is a necessity whereupon your efforts, your capacity to learn and your intellect shall
be judged. Be it in college, at work, or by the community, one’s capability to write will be
one of the first things to be considered. We have depended upon our skills in writing for the
past thousand or so years, to the point where it has become second nature for us to write, thus
it would make sense for this skill to be a required asset.

Although anyone with decent education may write and create paragraphs out of sentences,
and sentences out of words, and words from thought processes, for one to truly create art in
the form of texts is no trivial subject. Appreciable works of literature results from the arduous
process of gaining expertise in a language, but these works also comes after constant training
in the skill of writing, as well. Writing is the fruit of reading, comprehending, and
contemplating what has been read, and aside from that, it combines one’s own astuteness and
ability to remember information so that one may communicate most efficiently.

Excellent writers are, in more ways than one, highly accomplished individuals of their lingua
franca. Writing is an extension of one’s capability of speech that signifies one’s competence,
education, and so forth; it employs one’s ability to highlight relevant information for a
specified purpose, as well as one’s critical thinking skills, useful for the later stages of life.

Writing has caused the rise and fall of civilizations, sparked dogmatic ideas, and birthed
many religious beliefs; literature has changed the lives of generations and changed the course
of history. Writing, printing, the concept of a book itself—They have created history. Verily,
the written works are indeed the catalysts of civilization.

“Prose is architecture, not interior decoration.” – Ernest Hemingway