Internet vs. Books

In the very first chapter of Nicholas Carr's book, "The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains," he expresses to the reader his concerns about the effect that the internet has had and will have on the average person. He believes that it is because of the internet that people are losing their ability to concentrate. According to Carr, the realization occurred when he sat down to read a book. He noticed that his mind wanted to behave the same way that it does when he used the internet: jumping from page to page, checking emails, clicking on links, and googling things. This made him think about how technology we use in day to day life influences the way we think.

Although I agree with Carr's initial point that people have changed the way they think, I do not agree that people have lost the ability to concentrate on a book. When doing research, anyone would go to google instead of going to search through hundreds of books at the library, it is the logical thing to do. One can take in more information in less time when they use the resources presented by the internet. The internet has provided a source of instant gratification for many knowledge seeking minds. However, this does not mean that people have completely lost the ability to focus on a novel. Reading a novel is not a chore, it is something that should be enjoyable. If someone really wanted to read a novel then they would. It is really a matter of what the individual finds more intriguing: the quick gratification of the internet, or the long, suspenseful, and somewhat thrilling experience of reading a novel.

-Corinne Corcoran