Despite the sad tr
uth I wrote about yesterday to the effect that daily journals/twitters are often mundane, there are still many good reasons for keeping a journal.
Most of these were summed up by William Cobbett (1763 – 1835) an English journalist who promoted the parliamentary system, free speech, and the rights of the poor. He is best known for documenting horseback journeys published in 1830 as ‘Rural Rides’.
Here’s part of what Cobbett wrote in the un–catchily titled ‘Advice to Young Men And (Incidentally) to Young Women in the Middle and Higher Ranks of Life’ :
” Besides reading, a young man ought to write, if he have the capacity and the leisure. If you wish to remember a thing well, put it into writing, even if you burn the paper immediately after you have done; for the eye greatly assists the mind. Memory consists of a concatenation of ideas, the place, the time, and other circumstances, lead to the recollection of facts; and no circumstance more effectually than stating the facts upon paper. A journal should be kept by every young man. Put down something against every day in the year, if it be merely a description of the weather. Continue reading
