The Stigma Surrounding Reading in Today’s Society

With the vast advancements in technology, we live in an age where we are constantly surrounded by screens of some kind. Due to this widespread inflow of online content, physical books and the practice of reading has reduced drastically. Nowadays, it is much more popular to read magazines and blogs rather than books. 

People oftentimes take reading as an anti-social activity, and are put off by the idea of sitting and reading for hours on end. It’s generally much easier and significantly “cooler” to watch the movie or TV show adaptation of the book instead. This situation is worsened by people often stereotyping students in high school who choose to read in their spare time as “nerds”. Through using this as a derogatory term, they propel a stigma around books, and actively discourage young people from reading. 

Another reason for said stigma is the education system we have in place today. A high school where success is derived directly from how many AP or IB classes you’re taking, the marks you’re getting, and the number of clubs you are a president of is hardly a place where reading is likely to be encouraged. In the race to get perfect scores for a top tier university, we’re putting actual learning and development in the backseat. While a 1600 SAT score might secure you a spot in an Ivy League university, reading a book doesn’t directly contribute to your college application process or help you make money. 

There is also quite a bit of stigma surrounding reading genres. People tend to view Young Adult novels as a waste of time; claiming that if they were going to read a book, it may as well be something educational. However, YA novels and other stigmatized genres can, in fact, be political, inspirational and educational in an unconventional way. A book doesn’t have to be non-fiction or incredibly difficult in order for you to learn something from it. 

We live in an era where people seek instant gratification, which literature is unable to provide. Watching the adaptation, unfortunately, doesn’t cut it, since reading gives you the freedom to make the story your own. It is important to break this stigma around reading, especially in young people, and encourage them to take up novels that jog their imagination and creativity.