Wendell for Wednesday

So I guess Mr. Berry spoke at a book club at some town along the Ohio last week. First, I’m intrigued by a small town that holds an annual book club meeting – that sounds like my kind of place. And second, how did I miss this with it being so close?!

At any rate, a blogger jotted down some notes from his talk, and I particularly appreciated this rough quote:

After World War II, industrialization affected everything — agriculture, entertainment, health care. Local people stopped telling local stories and instead talked about what they saw on television. That’s a profound change. Real culture consists of conversations between old people and young people. Without that, something is really lost.

Wendell Berry, April 2012

I only work in an office these days a few days a week, but I have lately been surprised by the amount of chatter that goes on around me that revolves around everyone’s TV watching habits. I’m typically left out (which is fine) because we don’t have cable, and we don’t watch much of the same stuff that my co-workers watch. Berry argues that we have lost much from this phenomenon. I can’t help but agree…so what now?