The Tyranny of Writing

Constanze Weth

at 250 WPM

4 hours

The average reader, reading at a speed of 250 WPM, would take 4 hours to read The Tyranny of Writing.

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8

days at 30 min/day

240

total minutes

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The Tyranny of Writing

by Constanze Weth, Tommaso M. Milani

2018

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

240

9781474292443

Description

"This book examines the powerful role of writing in society. The invention of writing, independently at various places and times in history, always stood at the cradle of powerful civilizations. It is impossible to imagine modern life without writing. As individuals and social groups we hold high expectations of its potential for societal and personal development. Globally, huge resources have been and are being invested in promoting literacy worldwide. So what could possibly be tyrannical about writing? The title is inspired by Ferdinand de Saussure's argument against writing as an object of linguistic research and what he called la tyrannie de la lettre. His critique denounced writing as an imperfect, distorted image of speech that obscures our view of language and its structure. The chapters of the book, written by experts in language and literacy studies, go beyond this and explore tyrannical aspects of writing in society through history and around the world: from Medieval Novgorod, the European Renaissance and 19th-century France and Germany over colonial Sudan to postcolonial Sri Lanka and Senegal and present-day Hong Kong and Central China to the Netherlands and Spain. The metaphor of 'tyranny of writing' serves as a heuristic for exploring ideologies of language and literacy in culture and society and tensions and contradictions between the written and the spoken word."--Bloomsbury Publishing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many pages are in The Tyranny of Writing?

This edition of The Tyranny of Writing has approximately 240 pages. Please note, this is an estimate and the exact page count can vary between hardcover, paperback, and e-book versions.

How long does it take to read The Tyranny of Writing?

For most readers, The Tyranny of Writing typically takes between 5h 0m and 3h 20m to complete. This is based on the book's length of approximately 60,000 words and common reading speeds.

Here's a detailed breakdown: • Continuous reading at 250 WPM: approximately 4h 0m of focused reading • Casual reading (30 minutes/day): you could finish in roughly 8 days • Estimated word count: 60,000 words

Your individual reading time will vary based on your personal reading pace, the amount of daily reading time, and your familiarity with the subject matter.

What is the word count of The Tyranny of Writing?

The estimated word count for The Tyranny of Writing is approximately 60,000 words. This figure is calculated using industry-standard methods that consider genre-specific word density patterns, typical formatting and layout characteristics, and standard words-per-page ratios for published books.

This is an approximation — actual word count may vary based on font size, formatting, edition, and the presence of illustrations or charts.

Who is the author of The Tyranny of Writing?

The Tyranny of Writing was written by Constanze Weth, Tommaso M. Milani.

When was The Tyranny of Writing published?

The publication date for this specific edition is 2018. The original work may have been published on a different date.