Dictionaries and Encyclopaedias

Yes, dictionaries. After writing many texts, E-Mails and summaries, I realized the books I've been reading most are the dictionaries. They don't just help me to write correctly, they also help me to decide what to write. In my school backpack I always carry a small Portuguese/English dictionary. It helps me not only to translate unknown terms, but to check the correct writing of words (both Portuguese and English), to search for synonyms and to choose better expressions.

And there are the encyclopaedias. They're similar to dictionaries, but generally contains only the nouns, better explained, some with pictures and a list of related topics. When I learned to read, I used to spend hours reading them. I read everything, even things that were too complex to understand at that age. What I liked most was the animals, from the smallest fishes to the greatest mammals, from the colorless medusa to the brightest tropical bird. I grew reading about all those wonders and watching them in television series. They're now part of myself, although I have had little contact with "natural environments", since I've ever lived in a big capital. But I never lived far away from it. In the backyard of my house there have been many kinds of plants and trees. My family used to take me to the countryside and to the coastland in some weekends and holidays.

Today, I have seen children growing older, becoming adults, but not evolving. I've seen the next generation of humans growing, and didn't like it. The poorest countries are creating soldiers and the richest ones are creating dictators. And the books are disappearing from the houses. Are these two facts related? I think so. The parents blame the communication media for this degeneration, but they give their children no other choice.

Schools don't offer enough "civilization" to their students (look around and you will notice it). Excess of discipline, like military training and some religions' doctrines, is making things worse with fanaticism and intolerance. Many people believe humans aren't ruled by natural selection anymore. That's not true. In a near future, humans may not be one of the selected survivors...

This Page is dedicated to all dictionaries, encyclopaedias and the people that make them.

Page last modified on 1997-November-4 Tuesday.