Figure 1. iPhones |
In my previous post, Absently Connected, I discuss some of the issues with being constantly connected to the Internet and our digital technologies. One of the significant aspects is the fact that we are becoming more accustomed to this idea of being alone together. We would much rather text, email, or Facebook message. Real conversations are seemingly becoming a thing of the past. "It takes place in real time and you can't control what you're going to say...Texting, email, posting, all of these things let us present the self as we want to be. We get to edit, and that means we get to delete, and that means we get to retouch, the face, the voice...not too little, not too much, just right." (Turkle, 2012) Let us take social media platforms as an example. Many individuals rely heavily on social media as a communicative forum, but again we get to edit our profiles and images to our liking. We are relying more heavily on technology to form relationships based on the selves we created and the selves we want to portray to others. But how to we change this?
We should definitely become comfortable with the idea that being alone with our own thoughts and selves is a good thing. Solitude is okay. If you are at home, create spaces that are a strict "no tech
Figure 2. Texting During Dinner |
This video explains how technology and constant connectivity can have an affect on your personal life as the lines become blurred.
References:
Furedi, F. (2014, April). How The Internet and Social Media Are Changing Culture. Retrieved February 17, 2016, from http://www.aspeninstitute.cz/en/article/4-2014-how-the-internet-and-social-media-are-changing-culture/
Turkle, S. (2012, April). Transcript of "Connected, but alone?" Retrieved February 17, 2016, from https://www.ted.com/talks/sherry_turkle_alone_together/transcript?language=en
Images:
Figure 1. iPhones. [Jpeg]. Retrieved on February 17, 2016, from http://indeliblebranding.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/iphones2-300x225.png
Figure 2. Texting During Dinner. [Jpeg]. Retrieved on February 17, 2016, from http://socialmediaweek.org/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2014/06/global10.jpg
Video:
The University of Sydney. (2011, November 9). Constant connectivity. [Video File]. Retrieved February 17, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byjHH4ilvVw