3
Essay 2 The Importance of Readi ng and Writing (1)
Today science and te chnology has come to pervade ever y a spect of our lives. Comput er,
television and radio have almost replaced the newspaper and letter once dominated our
lives. Accordingl y, the issue about whether the abil ity t o read and write is more
important today may attract our attentions. It is clear th at classified views have
converged into two: some think reading and writi ng ability is more important toda y than
in the past, whil e others deny its importance. As I se e it, I a gree with the former view
without any h esitation and m y choice is based on a car eful conside ration of the
following reasons. THESIS STATEMENT
The main reason which may win most of people's support is that if lac k the
reading and writing ability, one would be considered as illiterate who has been deprived
of the most basic right of human beings in th e 21st centur y. It will be hard for us to
imagine how somebod y who can't read and w rite communicates with ot her people. A
case in point is that one of m y nei ghbors who is an old man and cannot read and write
may only talk wi th others face t o face. As for m aking fri ends by ema il and search
information in newspaper, it is absolutely impossible.
The second reason I wou ld like t o point out is t hat people toda y who canno t read
and write cannot even make a living. Good jobs are difficult to find bec ause of
economic depression. Nearly all the jobs require people who can read and write very
well. Even if on e just plans to be a driver, he mu st read t he road sign and know where
he is and where he will go.
Furthermore, the abili ty to read and write could bring us l ots of adva ntages.
Suppose that people who have tired out with a hard week's sweat and effort may get lots
of benefits and relief from reading a short novel and broaden his horizon by
appreciating a nice poem. Many friends around m e would believe r eading a nd writing
some effective ways to relax themselves.
People today especiall y thos e children ma y find it easier for them to manipulate
the mouse of the computer than to write things down b y hand. Watchin g TV instead of
reading ma y still occupy som eone's mo st leisure time. Yet if all the factors I discussed