Today, when we think of writing, the image of a man sitting in front of his desk with sheets of paper before him, a quill in his hand and an inkwell on the table, rarely comes to mind. But that was how writers practiced their craft in the olden days. In those days, the only tools a writer needed were an imaginative and creative mind, a powerful vocabulary, flair and passion for writing, a quill (probably many of them), an inkwell, ink, and sheets of paper.
Quill was the writing instrument that dominated the early years of writing — for more than 1400 years. Even now, some calligraphers use quill pens for their craft. Later, the quill was replaced by the fountain pen. Lewis Waterman invented the fountain pen and got a patent for it in 1884. With the invention of fountain pens writers could spend more time thinking and writing rather than preparing their writing instruments and inks. The ballpoint pen made its appearance in 1938; it was invented by Laszlo Biro, a journalist from Hungary. The writing instruments continued to evolve and got better thus making writing less cumbersome. But the power of the words still remains unchanged and the pen still plays a crucial role in shaping and changing the history of mankind and the lives of many.
Writers inspire, motivate, inform, engage, excite, empower, and take their readers through a range of emotions from absolute bliss to utter dismay with their words. Wars start and end, treaties and pacts get signed, people become famous or notorious, heroes are praised and villains punished, courtships start, love bloom and blossom, lovers get married, and some marriages end in divorces, authors are born and influence generations, people gossip, spy on each other, countries flourish and perish, all at the stroke of the pen. The Islamic prophet Muhammad is quoted as saying "The ink of the scholar is holier than the blood of the martyr." It was in 1839, the English author Edward Bulwer-Lytton coined the adage “The pen is mightier than the sword.” Truer words were never spoken!
The power of words cannot be overemphasized. According to Lord Byron:
“Words are things; and a small drop of ink,
Falling like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions think.”
Article comments
1 - Gordon Hauptfleisch
Excellent write-up. But I hate to think of Edward Bulwer-Lytton, after coining the phrase “The pen is mightier than the sword,” using the same 'might' to write "It was a dark and stormy night."
2 - Alexis Leon
Thanks Gordon. I really appreciate your comment. Regarding Lytton, may it was a flash of brilliance!
3 - Paresh
Well written as always! :)