When my father noticed my growing enthusiasm for writing, he bought me a fountain pen and ink for my birthday. It was, of course, a very symbolic gift for me. Apart from a few attempts, I never really used it because I didn’t want it to wear out. It still sits on the top shelf of my cupboard.
In a similar story, I once gifted my friend a feather quill pen and ink. It also occupies the top shelf in her room. I guess it means a lot to her too, doesn’t it?
Time and technology, regardless of their magnitude, always lead to progress in various fields. One of them is making the art of writing more practical and suitable for everyday use. We’ve come a long way from papyrus and reed pens to touch screens. But as people’s love of the past and retro never dies, old-fashioned works of art continue to thrive as personal curiosities and creations. This made me wonder: “How easy was it to produce so many world-class literary works or manuscripts back then?”
In the past, as now, only two physical tools were needed to practise the art of writing: paper and a pen (with ink). Neither paper nor pens were plentiful or of high quality. Let’s look at quills. As far as I’ve learnt, the process was not as simple as we might think. These natural pens, considered the ancestors of ink pens, had to be meticulously prepared. Not every feather could be used, and they had to be taken from a specific part of the wing. They weren’t easy to come by, I have to say. That alone made them quite expensive at the time. As a result, they were only to be found in places dedicated to writing, such as monasteries and libraries. It’s not surprising that those who had the opportunity to use them became prominent in society.
Today, when you want to use any drawing program on your computer, you are faced with a myriad of options. The simplest example is choosing the thickness or size of your drawing. This means having several quills, each carefully prepared in different thicknesses and shapes. Cutting them at the right angle, being careful not to break them… Would I forget what I wanted to write because of the tension?
And what about the ink, the companion? Even today, printers and their cartridges are universally “loved”, and the common sense about them is obvious. Every single one of these printers is a devoted ink drinker. I guess that’s something that hasn’t changed from the past to the present. Fortunately, ballpoint pens came to our rescue and we were freed from all that torture. As you can imagine, you had to dip the pen into the ink several times with each stroke or drawing. And a drop of ink dripping onto the parchment would be a disaster, wouldn’t it? Or soaking through the paper. Well, in those days they had to write at a certain angle. There was a slight slope where they put the paper. Can we please start writing?
Now let’s explore their ancient companions, parchment and paper. Because I’m afraid to go into the subject of how to undo a letter written in error. Imagine making that mistake and possibly losing your job. It’s so satisfying these days to be able to scribble over the words we’ve written wrong. In the worst case, we can now change the paper.
When you think of the intricate designs and different colours on those parchments in the past, it is mind-boggling. They were genuine works of art… It reminds me of the novel “A Canticle for Leibowitz”. I thought of the journey of Francis, which is well worth reading. Now I even hesitate to draw stick figures. And look at the masterpieces they created back then.
Let’s move closer to the present and leave parchment behind. Even at the time when the classics were written, paper was not easily accessible. As you know, many writers were poor and struggled to make a living. Some couldn’t afford typewriters, and there were even those who had trouble getting paper. Worst of all, there was no way to erase mistakes. You either had to scrape off the ink with a knife, which damaged the paper, or dip it in water to dissolve the ink. Even if you dried it afterwards, the paper would inevitably wear out. I’m sure those who made the most efficient use of paper were careful not to leave any blank spaces.
In this sense, it’s understandable that such arduous artistic endeavours were highly valued. Yes, some of them are only appreciated after the artists have passed away. That’s a bitter truth. If we take another example from another art form, like Van Gogh, he sometimes sold his paintings for a minimal amount just to earn some daily income. There were times when he couldn’t find canvases, so he would clean them and paint over them. The only painting (formally) he sold during his lifetime was “The Red Vineyard”.
When taking notes, it is worth remembering that paper and pen are readily available yet priceless tools. We don’t need to use fountain pens or quills unless we want to make an aesthetic statement. We now have an abundance of paper, with plenty of backup if we need it. The irony is that I’m bringing all this to you digitally.
We don’t know what the future holds; some developments take a long time. However, if you ever find yourself compelled to travel back in time, I would advise you to at least take a pen and paper with you.
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