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A big problem is that Schools ruin reading for kids by making them read boring dusty old "Classics". What kind of 8 year old wants to read "A Tale of Two Cities"?
That just ruins it for them.
And science fiction has been getting dumb since Star Wars. LOL
It may be harder to find the hard science fiction, but there is some good stuff out there that is newer.
Short Stories: Conservation of Shadows by Yoon Ha Lee
Dystopian: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge
Blindsight by Peter Watts
Darwin's Radio by Greg Bear (some people hate his writing, but love his ideas)
Pushing Ice by Alistair Reynolds
What has caused the dumbing down of the American Culture? Is it just me or do people in general seem less interested in thinking, learning and knowledge than ever before. I also noticed a general movement towards apathy in many Americans. It seems like we are not really all that concerned about anything outside of our own little world.
Sure there is a share of people who complain about things but they do so with so little knowledge or insight. I can not believe much of what I read on Internet Message Boards. So many people have so little knowledge about the topics of the day.
Look at TV and the movies. The shows are getting more insane and mind numbing every year. This has to be a reflexion of our culture.
Is there an increasing level of anti intellectualism in our culture or has it always been that way?
I believe there was never much intellectual curiosity in the U.S. It's never been that type of country.
Has any country ever been that type of country? Progress has always been the result of a small percentage of the population.
But what has been the real purpose of education since the latter half of the 19th century?
psik
The way I see it, in other countries even folks with no access to education longed desperately for it. I don't see that here, and believe there was never a desperate desire for learning and knowledge here.
I think part of the issue is that most people just don't care about much outside of their own bubble. They're too busy posting what they ate for dinner on social media to pay attention to what's happening in the world. They would rather watch a trashy reality show than read a book. I can't remember the name of it, but there's a movie with Luke Wilson where he gets frozen and wakes up in the future and everyone is so unbelievably dumb. I think it was meant to be a comedy, but I saw it as a horror film.
The movie about a super dumb future in America is called Idiocracy.
Good point. If you're interested, read The Age of American Unreason by Susan Jacoby. She talks about that.
There has always been a note of anti-intellectualism in the US. It has simply become louder.
I looked at it on Amazon, and will be ordering it today. Thanks for the recommendation.
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