issue38 考前倒数第4篇 大概吧 互拍

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38"In the age of television, reading books is not as important as it once was. People can learn as much by watching television as they can by reading books."

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In this era, television industry is booming. And indeed, television has greatly changes the lifestyle of people. This give some people the illusion that television can replace books, for people can learn as much by watching television as reading books. But, in my opinion, this is nothing but an illusion. Televisions have lot of limits, which makes it can never surpass books as a means of learning tool. Television somewhat impedes learning rather than enhances.

Televisions provide vivid image and impressive sound effects which can draw people's interest. But, it is the image and sound makes people focus mainly on the superficial things and prevent people from contemplating what underlies the image and sound. Showing the students a video about hurricane, they are astonished by the scene of how the hurricanes destroy the buildings, blow away the automobiles, and tear up the trees. And maybe, they would remember little about how the hurricane was form. It is partly because the vivid image draws their attention so greatly and they just attracted by the phenomenon and overlook the theory which seems not as interesting and striking. But, by reading a geographic textbook, which emphasizes mainly on the theory, the students may be able to better focus on what they should remember and comprehend.

And, television offers people intuitionistic figures, which do help people easier get the abstract information. But it is this kind of intuitionistic information impedes people's development of cognitive skills and imagination. When people are reading books, they should read what the writers write on the book, but also should try to reading between the lines. By this process, they advance their ability of comprehension. And when people read literatures, they usually gradually build up the characters in the books according to the description of the author and their own experience. In this process, their imagination is greatly developed. Cognitive skills and imagination is crucial to people, and these skills may be not well developed if people are satisfied by the instant information provided by the television. By watching Hamlet on the television, we can much easily judge from his appearance and behavior to conclude what kind of person he is. While reading the play script, we should read, put the piece of description together, and build up our own Hamlet, draw his appearance by our selves, and see his behavior in our minds’ eye. Reading books seems inconvenient, but we think more and develop our brain by reading, rather than passively let the television show producer tell us what kind of person Hamlet should be. In a nutshell, reading books can help people practice their cognitive skills and imagination, which are skills we can hardly learn by watching television.

Further, there are some knowledge can hardly be conveyed by visual image, such as theories of philosophy and physic. This kind of theories is insubstantial. They are the concentration of human wisdom and thoughts, which can hardly be materialized into images. How can people illustrate "I think, therefore I am" by television? Only through reading books and contemplating can people deeply understand this famous quotation from Descartes. How can people fully comprehend the quantum theory by watching a documentation film? Only by reading thesis and do some computing by oneself can the students of physics get the gist of this theory created by the masters of the past. Television has its own limitation. It can not convey the virtual thoughts and theories which is easier and more precise described by words.

All in all, although television can provide us imposing image and striking sound effects, but it is not an effective method of learning as books always are.