Connected, But Alone
One thing that really hit me was when Sherry Turkle
said that we would rather spend an evening at home social networking instead of
going to a pub with friends. The accuracy of this statement is disturbing. It’s
true, we can’t control what we’re going to say when we are out with friends. But,
we can control what we’re going to say and how we present ourselves through
social media. Many of us have experienced this and can relate. According to
Turkle, “we get to edit, and delete which means we get to retouch ourselves”,
no wonder we would rather stay home connected to our lifelines. “We use
technology to define ourselves”, Sherry Turkle couldn’t have said it better.
I don't think there's a "correct" opinion on this, but I think the idea that our generation writ large would rather spend a night at home on the internet than go out to a pub is an oversimplification. There are other factors that are keeping people out of the pubs. Most people I know either simply can't afford it or work nights. Social media in this case is being used to keep in touch in spite of the other forces that are keeping us all from connecting on an interpersonal level.
ReplyDeleteThe last decade or so has definitely shown a trend where people (especially younger generations) are more reliant on the ability to 'edit' themselves. While this can be beneficial in certain situations, we can't completely lose the ability 'think on our feet'. Critical thinking in a stressful, sudden situation is a skill that is quickly disappearing.
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