Is Written Communication More Prestigious Than Spoken Communication?

457 Words2 Pages
It is commonly said that the written mode of communication is the more prestigious mode between written and spoken. Over the past centuries, both modes of communication have evolved to serve their purposes and fit our needs. The truth is none of the two modes of communication is more powerful or prestigious than the other as their purposes are different and both effectively complete their purpose. The written mode of communication is often more precise than spoken communication. Written pieces are often more sophisticated, elaborate and provoke the reader into larger and wider thoughts. This is possible due to the rate of involvement can be controlled by both the reader and the writer. In written communications, the writer has the ability to edit and re-write the material at his own pace and in some cases can span over many years. During this time, the writer is able to reflect on the communication and make changes that will give a more direct effect on the reader. In a similar way, the reader is able to read the information at their own pace. The reader has the ability to stop and try to interpret the information. The reader can also have the ability to re-read the material, which can have an extraordinary effect of the readers understanding of a text. Spoken mode can also be more effective at conveying information towards an audience. During the use of spoken communication, many other signals can be used to communicate to the audience, such as body language, eye contact, intonation, volume and other visual cues such as clothes, which all can have a psychological impact on the audience’s understanding. With the use of these other means to affect the communication the speaker ultimately has more control over the audience. As the audience cannot re-listen to the speaker it is vital that the audience is giving their attention to the speaker. To aid this, the speaker
Open Document