by Miko Johnston (standing in for Jackie Houchin)
Have you ever wondered how the great writers of the past would have handled today’s technology? How would they have incorporated it, not only by using it themselves to research and write their novels, but also by giving some of that technology to their characters?
Mark Twain called Tom Sawyer his “hymn to boyhood”. Can you imagine what that boy would have done with a cellphone? Or if Captain Ahab had GPS (or, for that matter, a rocket launcher) to hunt the whale? Moby Dick might have been a short story. What about the Bennet family from Pride and Prejudice watching YouTube videos to help them with their financial struggles? Perhaps they’d decide to forego marriage and sell handmade items on Etsy.
It does sound ridiculous, but this is the reality we have today. It would seem anachronistic to read about characters who, unless they’re living off the grid. don’t have cellphones, computers, or internet access. We no longer even consider earlier developments like electricity, indoor plumbing, and motorized vehicles, which would have been unheard of 150 years ago, to be “technology” anymore.
We might think the intrusion of technology would ruin a good story, but consider how many old stories have been “modernized”. For every silly interpretation like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, you have thoughtful versions like West Side Story, Cruel Intentions, Kiss Me Kate, and Clueless. In each case, the plot, characters, and theme are timeless. So technology becomes a tool, and like any tool, it can be useful, even necessary, as long as it isn’t misused.
What story from the past do you think could be updated to include modern-day apparatus without sacrificing the essence of the original work?
Miko Johnston, a founding member of The Writers in Residence, is the author of the historical fiction series, “A Petal in the Wind”, as well as a contributor to several anthologies. Miko lives in Washington (the big one) with her rocket scientist husband. Contact her at mikojohnstonauthor@gmail.com
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.Posted by Jackie H. (Thanks, Miko!)
