“Homo legens” – an Endangered Species?

Abstract

Is reading facing a crisis nowadays and is the reader an endangered species? Does the development of modern information technologies cause a decline of reading? The objective of the paper is to present the relationship between the book and the reader, the issues concerning contemporary reading, and consequently, reading culture, and the place of the reader and the book in the information society. The process of becoming a reader begins already in childhood, with one’s reading interests and habits changing in the process of psychophysical and psychosocial maturing. They normalize only in adult life. The paper also utilizes the National Library’s reports on the state of readership and on the development of the e-book market in Poland. The dynamic development of digital technologies, the electronic form of publication, and the appearance of newer and newer interfaces of e-book platforms have increased the mobility of literature in the world. In the 21st century, reading is experiencing its ups and downs; nevertheless, it has not been deprived of its significance in culture. The development of new technologies cannot negatively impact reading: conversely, this development has become a carrier of reading culture and the medium that promotes this readership.