Dear Sherry Turkle,
In your introduction to Alone Together you ask the question
“Does virtual intimacy degrade our experience of the other kind and, indeed of
all encounters of any kind?” This was very interesting along with many of the
other aspects you touched on. I
agree with you when you talked about how technology acts as a substitute for face-to-face
interaction. Clearly today people
of all ages now use smartphones and computers more than ever for many of our
daily tasks. It’s also true that
many people choose to text and send email as opposed calling or meeting in
person. A lot of people in today’s
society figure we have the technology to do these things so why go through the
trouble of communicating in “real time.”
I
disagree with you however when you describe how people can feel when technology
doesn’t satisfy every need and has you feeling “isolated.” The only people that can feel this way
are the ones who have let this technology take over their lives. Most people who utilize technology in
this way do it because it helps make their lives easier. People have things to do along with
daily tasks, which are accomplished with help of technology like email. Those who find themselves feeling alone
have chose to use technology to their disadvantage. Just because I have 900 friends on Facebook doesn’t mean I
have that many in real life and I realize this fact. I know who my actual friends are because I see them in
person. Certain individuals who
spend their lives on Myspace or in a virtual community all day tend not to go
out into the real world very often.
They become fixated on their virtual lives, which at that point can only
lead to negative feelings.
Regards,
Chris
No comments:
Post a Comment