Bic - the reason humans are moving away from 'cursive writing' and other theories

[Mt_Rider]

https://getpocket.com/explore/item/how-the-ballpoint-pen-killed-cursive?utm_source=pocket-newtab

 

 

Well, this is interesting.....tho not vital to society.    Thick ink doesn't do the flowing script that was uses by our ancestors.  But the roller ball "Bic" type pens require it or....they leak.  Therefore:  pocket protectors.   

 

I'm of a pre-Bic generation and even remember pens with ink cartridges.....or sucking up ink into a 'bladder' within the pen.  MESSY!  

 

MtRider  ...anyone else with memories of ink stains that didn't come from leaving a pen in your pocket during laundry? 

[Midnightmom]

I remember when you would buy refill "cartridges" for click style pens (properly called "retractable pens)  and wasn't sure they even sold them anymore, but apparently they do. The worst part of replacing the ink cartridge was the possibility of losing the spring from the pen! 

 

However, most of the ones of this style that I have are business promotional pens and don't take refills; you just toss the whole thing.

 

Moving on to being able to read/write cursive. (All of the following info is from various articles on Wikipedia.)

 

Most of our founding documents are written in a style similar to Spencerian script, though that wasn't developed until the 1800s.

 

 

This was later simplified into the Palmer Method, but this is not the cursive that I learned either. Still too many curly-cues and some of the capital letters are hard to distinguish. Actually, I don't recognize the "F" at all, and I would definitely have to take context cues to figure out what a word might be. Same for the "Q" but not as bad.

 

By the 1950s this had been replaced by an even simpler plainer style - the Zaner-Blozer method. This is the style that I learned when I was in grade school in the late 50s, early 60s. I definitely recognize the "F" and the "Q" though some of the upper case letters still look like their lower case cousins, only larger. I remember sitting is class and "writing" lines and lines of connected ovals and also slanted lines. This was to develop the angles needed for eventually connecting the various letters. Does anyone else remember these "penmanship" exercises? Even today, when I am doodling, I will sometimes just revert back to creating a few lines of these exercises! (It is simply amazing what you can find online!)

 

 

When I got to college, I developed my own "style" of writing cursive. Using all cursive letters was too slow for note taking in a lecture class, so  lot of my capital letters became manuscript/block style letters while the rest of the word would be written in cursive. Have you developed your own "style" of cursive writing? Can your friends and family "read" it??? Over the years most of my letters have become flattened so that most of them look like a long squiggly "worm" dragged across the paper! Sometimes I even have problems trying to read what I wrote!

[Midnightmom]

With that post out of the way, I think that gov't schools (especially since the new decade) have not pushed the idea of learning how to write, and most importantly READ, cursive simply because they don't want the "masses" to be able to read the Founding documents in their original form. It's like why the Catholic Church was against having copies of the Bible available to parishioners - they could tell the congregants what they (the Church) wanted them to believe instead of allowing the Word to reveal all of the traditions, etc that were being imposed - indulgences, etc. - as being un-Biblical.

 

In our case, if you don't know what you're rights are, you can't claim them or defend them from being taken away.

 

I don't know if this is the reason that Jeanne Robertson insisted that her grandchildren learn cursive.

 

 

[out_of_the_ordinary]

Midnightmom,  YES!   I completely agree with why the gov't schools aren't teaching it!  (Literally, everyday I am so thankful that we homeschool   ;  DD will be learning cursive.  Interestingly, in our history lessons we recently learned about William Tyndale. ) 

[Mt_Rider]

Midnight....at some point, I began mixing cursive with printing.....all in one sentence.  I use printing in the first letter a lot.  But I kinda switch off within the sentence.  But ....it's not consistent.  It's not like I always print some letters and use cursive for others.     I have no reasoning for this either...just kinda noticed it....   

 

I've seen books and .....the old census records ....     THEY are hard to read.  Finally figured out one census recorder was using ....if I remember... an "f" looking letter for an "s"......and then the whole sheet made a lot more sense.  Ah HA!

 

   Yanno?  We all seem to think that our time and ways have been solid forever.  Things like this are kind of a wake-up call. 

 

MtRider     ....oh look.  Isn't that quaint?  He's reading on PAPER!  

Edited September 30, 2021 by Mt_Rider

[euphrasyne]

I have a pen fetish, not going to lie.  They definitely sell refill cartridges for all types of pen.  You can also buy refill cartridges that are basically a tube of ink that the end is like a toothpaste top and it bursts when it is put into the fountain pen.  They even make refillable calligraphy pens.  You can also still buy bottles of ink if you want to dip an old style one.   

 

Amazon.com : 30 PCS Jinhao Fountain Pen Ink Cartridges Refill 6 Colors Set（ Black, Blue, Apple Green, Purple, Red and Orange) International Standard Size 2.6mm bore diameter : Office Products

 

 

Statistically, men are more likely to block print, women are more likely to use cursive, and you are more likely to use a mix as you get older.  Graphology (study of handwriting) used to fascinate me.  

 

I'm extremely OCD (not a good thing) so I always have a lot of handwritten notes and lists as well as multiple paper planners.   I can do Zaner Bloser, D'Nealian, and Spencerian. I find that quick notes to myself are mostly fast D'Nealian  (or a Peterson derivative) cursive with a few mixed in print letters and that notes to proper places like the school are mostly proper D'Nealian cursive.     When I write to my kids or husband or generic people I specifically use a very proper Zaner Blouser print because it is easily recognizable for everyone.  They all tell me that it looks like a grade 2 teacher wrote them notes. I use the same style in my appointment/to do planner and the master calendar so everyone can see it quickly and clearly.  

 

DH writes in a print so small and blocky that I cannot read it at all.   I have to rewrite it as he tells me what it says.  I have never seen him write cursive other than his signature.  I know he can read it but I'm actually uncertain if he can write it.   DD24 has good handwriting mostly D'Nealian.   DD18 is an amazing artist but her handwriting looks like a 5 year old was given mountain dew--she was never taught cursive in school and only knows what I taught her.  When she feels like it, she can do amazing calligraphy.   That is crazy to me.  My brother is the same--his handwriting is trash but he can do amazing calligraphy to the point where he is the one that used to write names on the awards certificates for the school (back in the day they were written in not printed.)  Same DD18 has a lot of trouble reading cursive.   DD13 was taught cursive in school and can read it but not write it.  Her handwriting is large and not uniform.   DD1's idea of handwriting is to eat the pen.  ^^   I blame DH.   They did not get this from me.    

Edited September 30, 2021 by euphrasyne

[Annarchy]

I write in cursive, all the time, because, ‘they’ said the younger generations can’t read it.

 

All my envelopes are hand written in cursive, all my letters are also, and the checks I write & send, I even spell out the cents, just to be ornery.  

 

We spent hours upon hours, writing line by line, pages and pages of cursive lettering.  That’s the same way they taught us shorthand.  Grandmother would say, “A refined lady knows how to write properly.”
 

I have a tote full of refillable pens, and a few collectible Cross pen sets, with extra cartridges.

 

A helpful hint, spray hair spray on clothing ink spots, then wash.  

[Momo]

I remember the ink cartidges too.  The boys had cute little tricks to make messes with them.  They sure showed up on our white school uniform shirts/blouses. When the Bic pens first came in they would splotch big gobs of ink on your homework.  They could be messy too.

[Littlesister]

I do remember those cartridges..   I also remember the cross pens as I used to have a set of them.  All my granddaughters learned to right cursive, but by the time grandson was old enough to start learning it, they stopped teaching it. I still right in cursive. Don't think that is going to change. Just have to remember to write to grandson in print as he still doesn't know how to read or write in cursive. Tried to teach him but he just wasn't interested. 

[Midnightmom]

17 hours ago, Littlesister said:

Tried to teach him but he just wasn't interested. 

 

Did you watch the video I posted above? Maybe it will give you a solution; or at least, spark some ideas. 

[Mt_Rider]

It becomes a secret code....like the Egyptian writing....er, glyphs. 

 

MtRider  ....anyone else feeling OLDE?   

Edited October 6, 2021 by Mt_Rider

[Littlesister]

Midnightmom, I did watch the video. Grandson always hated school. He is ADHD. You can't get him to settle down long enough to learn. He will be 20 years old next month and also now living in Washington state. So he is on his own now to have to learn it. 

Yeah Mt. Rider this does make me feel old. The things we did in our younger days are days gone by.