Thanks are due to Jemima Kelly (“The shift to a more oral culture is not all bad”, Opinion, March 17) for highlighting the positive aspect of an oral culture as well as the importance of writing — which is not just important for helping us to think.
As a (senior) lawyer who often presents to junior lawyers, I regularly highlight the challenge with just the written word (and the importance of clear drafting) by asking them to explain the following statement: “I never said she stole the book.”
If you hear it spoken, it could have six very different meanings (try reading it out loud with emphasis on a different word each time).
Similarly, having had cause to read transcripts of telephone conversations (from government wiretaps, as it happens), it became equally obvious that what was easy to follow when listened to becomes almost impossible to follow when written.
Each has its place and importance and we lose either at our peril.
Richard Given
Group General Counsel, OpenPayd, London EC1, UK