▶ Your Answer :
In the midst of the technological era, digital libraries have emerged, drastically changing the traditional dynamics in knowledge and culture. While the writer is an ardent proponent of digital libraries, the speaker presents a contradictory opinion based on three reasons.
First of all, the author emphasizes the accessibility of digital libraries. Available in online, digital libraries reach towards the wider audience, transcending mobility issues, such as disability and proximity. On the other hand, the lecturer criticizes the myopic meaning of the accessibility in the writer’s assertion. While the digital libraries certainly blur the geographical boundaries, they still consolidate the socioeconomic hierarchy, since majority of people do not have the internet access at the first place.
Second, according to the reading passage, digital libraries save time. By simply entering keywords, the digital library users can avoid unnecessary time, roaming around the library to find the right book. However, the instructor casts doubt on such argument, since selecting the right information in digital libraries also takes time. In the digital library, anyone can post without proper editorial process, which makes the time-consuming double checking of the sources’ reliability more crucial than ever.
Lastly, the writer believes that digital libraries prompt intellectual flowerings by encouraging authors to freely exchange their literary works and information with others. On the contrary, the professor claims that the digital libraries ultimately discourage authors to write, since their precious intellectual properties are freely downloaded without any justifiable profits. |