A Brief History of Human Communication

As we begin to discuss the role of media in the development and practice of a worldview, we can generally observe that media is part of the larger topic of communication. We use different means to carry and present our thoughts and ideas.

Also as we push into the Worldview Elements of the Trusted Media, The Priesthood, and the In Group we will be considering this centrally important question:

Who can we truly trust?

As human beings, we were created to communicate. The most basic form of communication is speaking person to person, face to face. From there we have two barriers that limit communication: 1) space and 2) time. As we trace human development, we see how we have overcome these barriers which has in turn shaped our cultures and traditions.

We begin with the Biblical starting point of humanity being created in the image of God with an innate ability for language and communication. In the Genesis story, there is no indication that the Lord needed to instruct Adam and Eve how to speak; language was an intrinsic part of their design.

This is a very different starting point from that of Atheistic Naturalism which sees human communication being a function of an evolutionary process.

The Word Spoken – Oral Cultures

We begin with oral communication – speaking together, face-to-face. Those who hold to some form of an evolutionary view of humanity’s development might make the case that drawing pictures and symbols was the first form of communication. We begin with the Creator God speaking to the first humans and them responding in human language.

Spoken human language is very complex and so has the ability to communicate quite complex ideas. Oral cultures depend on the ability of its members to remember and transmit the ideas of that culture.

But then, how do we remember those ideas across time? How do we record our ideas for future generations? Also, how can we communicate across space? Yes, we can shout, but that has limited effect.

The Word Written – Literate Cultures

Spoken human language can be written and recorded in symbolic form. Alphabets, syllabaries, and logographic systems allow us to write our language down and so persevere it. Written language allows us to transcend both the time and space barriers. With written language, we not only hear the message, but we can also see the message in written form. The way our brains process these two forms of communication is different.

The advent of moveable type and the Printing Press in the 1400s was a water shed moment in human history. Before Johannes Gutenberg’s invention, all written communication had to be be produced by hand – a slow and expensive process. The Printing Press made it possible for books to be produced more quickly and economically and so put written material in the hands of the general public. This opened the doors to mass communication.

The 1800s was the beginning of a time of major revolution in terms of mass communication which would extend into the 20th Century. In the wake of the Scientific Revolution, many new technologies emerged which changed the course of history and human development. First came the telegraph which allowed instantaneous communication over vast distances and eventually around the world. Soon came the radio and the ability to broadcast sound around the world.

Seeing is Believing? – Visual Cultures

Since the mid-20th Century, with the advent of Movies and Television, we have seen the development of video dominant cultures. Now, we can literally see around the world almost instantaneously. These visual media are not only used for reporting the “facts” of reality. Both Television and Film become the means of creating powerful narratives that engage the whole person. These media give us the ability to create new worlds and versions of reality in a way that is unprecedented in human history.

In the next topic, we will need to look a little more closely at these media because not all media are created equal.