Can money buy love for reading? Gwee Li Sui on our results-oriented culture

Synopsis: Conversations and interviews that offer you one thing to consider. Every Wednesday, In Your Opinion speaks to thinkers, leaders, and the folks shaping our lives and the problems of the day.

A 12 months after the launch of the Culture Go credit, take-up charges sit at simply 10 per cent. In the meantime, Singapore’s new nationwide studying motion, ReadSG, now goals to pay folks to attempt constructing a constant studying behavior.

What does this say about us as a folks? Is it such a nasty factor if we cease studying long-form fiction and simply learn social media? And why trouble with SingLit after we are already so conversant in Singapore’s culture?

On this episode, assistant opinion editor Lianne Chia speaks to poet, graphic artist, and literary critic Gwee Li Sui on why focusing an excessive amount of on hitting KPIs in our quest for culture typically backfires. They focus on how doomscrolling and short-form textual content change our capability for empathy and nuance, and uncover the brutal financial actuality of being a inventive author in Singapore.

Highlights (click on/faucet above):

0:45 Singapore’s pragmatic manner in dealing with social issues

7:55 Why is SingLit a tough promote for readers in comparison with world titles?

8:52 Why do Singaporean college students nonetheless write college essays about winter and autumn?

22:08 Is Singlish nonetheless thought-about “dangerous English” right now?

27:01 What can we miss if we solely learn social media?

34:38 With AI summarising all the things, is there nonetheless room to learn for enjoyment?

37:57 Why paying folks to learn is like forcing youngsters to eat greens

44:45 Is being a inventive author in Singapore an financial useless finish?

51:45 Why Gwee prefers to write down for readers 50 years sooner or later

53:42 Is self-censorship amongst native writers a fear?

Learn ST’s Opinion part: https://str.sg/w7sH