Throughout my life, I've heard of a curious concept known as having a pen pal. People who have never met correspond to each other through postal mail. In the 'Peanuts' comic strips by Charles Schultz, Charlie Brown has a pen pal (or pencil pal, since he always smudges the ink when using a pen) from another country, and tells them all about his life. In 'Julie of the Wolves' by Jean Craigshead George, Julie has a pen pal as well, and they share things about themselves.
The idea of a pen pal has always intrigued me. It's an opportunity to connect with someone, maybe even a person who lives far away, and get to know them. This has been used to make friendships, learn of other lifestyles and cultures, improve literacy, or practice reading and writing in another language. It's something I've mostly read about; I don't know of many real-life examples of this. I've gained the impression that's it's growing obsolete.
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| Poor Charlie Brown, everyone's always picking on him. |
The idea of a pen pal has always intrigued me. It's an opportunity to connect with someone, maybe even a person who lives far away, and get to know them. This has been used to make friendships, learn of other lifestyles and cultures, improve literacy, or practice reading and writing in another language. It's something I've mostly read about; I don't know of many real-life examples of this. I've gained the impression that's it's growing obsolete.
Really, if you think about it, sending letters isn't as common. Today, we have other, faster methods of communication, such as phone calls, text messaging, e-mail, and social media. Even communication by e-mail isn't used as much any more.
In some ways, advancements in technology have made it easier to get in contact with people. We can log onto social media or forums, and suddenly we're exposed to a wide and diverse network of people all over the world. But in a way, this can sometimes change the way we communicate. With snail mail, the slower response time and the postage required to send it often drives us to write longer and more detailed letters, instead of investing time and money into a brief or uninformative reply.
On the other hand, modern forms of communication allow more natural conversation, since messages are received instantly or within a short time. Direct messages can be just as long or convey as much information. And, because of the large number of people online and the wide variety of sites, people can easily find others that they have things in common with. Even things more difficult to find now have their own websites, forums, etc.
For example, pen pals have been used in learning a language, or knowing more about cultures. People from all over the globe can be found online, and if you look in the right places, it's easy to find these individuals. And not only are there language learning sites, they have forums where people can practice their target language or ask questions. People sometimes arrange voice or video chats as well.
Finding people you share interests with, or making friends, is another reason people have pen pals. It's also why people join forums or use social media. Even niche-specific interests or things otherwise difficult to find are now right at your fingertips. Are you a writer? There are websites for that! Do you have a passion for Pokémon games? There are websites for that! Are you an elf? There are websites for that!
Perhaps pen pals aren't as common now as they were in the days of Charlie Brown, and his epic inability to use a pen. However, the concept of long-distance communication and making friends from afar isn't gone. The methods may have changed, but the idea remains the same.
On the other hand, modern forms of communication allow more natural conversation, since messages are received instantly or within a short time. Direct messages can be just as long or convey as much information. And, because of the large number of people online and the wide variety of sites, people can easily find others that they have things in common with. Even things more difficult to find now have their own websites, forums, etc.
For example, pen pals have been used in learning a language, or knowing more about cultures. People from all over the globe can be found online, and if you look in the right places, it's easy to find these individuals. And not only are there language learning sites, they have forums where people can practice their target language or ask questions. People sometimes arrange voice or video chats as well.
Finding people you share interests with, or making friends, is another reason people have pen pals. It's also why people join forums or use social media. Even niche-specific interests or things otherwise difficult to find are now right at your fingertips. Are you a writer? There are websites for that! Do you have a passion for Pokémon games? There are websites for that! Are you an elf? There are websites for that!
Perhaps pen pals aren't as common now as they were in the days of Charlie Brown, and his epic inability to use a pen. However, the concept of long-distance communication and making friends from afar isn't gone. The methods may have changed, but the idea remains the same.
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