Never let it be said that I was claiming that Victoria Beckham was some sort of subhuman animal for not reading. I said no such thing (besides, she’s got other things going for her that provide her with status), and I don’t recall reading anyone who did. People were more surprised, I think, than hostile.
Hester Lacey has decided to ride to the rescue of the aliterate everywhere. Why, she wonders, do people come down harder on folks like Victoria Beckham for not reading than they would on people who, say, don’t like to cook, or garden, or do math? I will suggest several possible reasons.
- Despite the ubiquity of radio, television, and the Internet, most Western cultures still grant the book a status and authority apart from and above other media.
- I have no links to give you, but I have seen reports that indicate adults who continue to learn and actively engage in intellectual activities (and reading in particular) are less likely to suffer certain health problems, including Alzheimer’s.
- Researches like Joseph Gold and others involved in the bibliotherapy movement now believe that people who do not read could be less capable of taking control of certain aspects of their lives. They see themselves trapped in a specific narrative that describes their lives, and have difficulty envisioning themselves in a new narrative.
- In many circles readers are granted a higher social status, because they are perceived as more educated, or as enjoying more sophisticated pleasures (whether this is true or not, is of course another kettle of fish entirely), and that is a status we also generally confer on uncommonly wealthy folks like Victoria Beckham.
Personally I just think that people who read are more interesting to talk to than those who don’t.
