Hello everyone! I'm beginning to read Amusing Ourselves To Death by Neil Postman and it's actually pretty interesting. It's not one of those books with fictional characters; it's more like an essay or report that Postman writes about his experiences and opinions. It may seem a little difficult in the beginning but you just have to take time to understand what Postman is trying to say. For me, that's getting a dictionary for the words I don't know. I also take side notes so that at the end of a chapter, I can easily find his main ideas. I've only read one chapter so far. The author is just trying to explain how we seem to communicate more through media and technology than having an actual conversation with someone. Then, he talks about how television seems to take control of us through imagery and visual pictures. He also talks about how media communication has a dominant influence on an individual. The book is interesting if you take time to think and analyze it. I pretty much agree with what he's saying. I don't think that technology is bad, I just believe that it's not healthy if too much time is spent on it. Many will begin to see it as something they need and depend on, if they engulf themselves into it everyday.
- Jenascia Wilson :)
Jenascia: I agree with Postman's theory about how we communicate. Not only are we more dependent on technology now to help us communicate than we ever were before, but it also leads to us getting further apart. You don't have to see your friends every day because they're on facebook, instagram, snapchat, or twitter, right? But how often do we actually take the time to have a real conversation with them like we would in person? Instead, we like their posts and keep up with their lives, but we never actually talk to them, and we stray further apart. So yes, our main method of communication has become through technology, but this also lessened our overall real communication with each other. And don't worry, the dictionary has become my new best friend too! Good luck on the rest of Postman's book!
ReplyDeleteIt is true that social sites keep us from having real conversations with others. It can actually interferes with our social skills. We find it easier texting someone rather than actually talking face to face. We can correct our words by adding and deleting! Thats the beauty of technology. From my experience, I find myself wanting to just play video games, watch tv, and use my phone rather than hanging out with friends or going places. Do you guys think it can also contribute to how we behave around others?
ReplyDeleteI find that so true, actually! I've been very antisocial ever since I had my gotten my first smart phone. I'm doing this over my phone right now. I find self also wanting to play video games by myself rather than going to the mall and hanging out with the girls. And as for how we behave around others that's a large possibility only because we can't delete what we say in person. Or "undo" an action. It's permanent in the real world.
DeleteWow, that is true with me too. It kind of feels like technology actually makes us do less and feel less worried. Maybe that's why we like it so much ;D
ReplyDeleteI agree that although it may seem easier to communicate with someone through social media, it is not always the correct solution. We, meaning society, spend too much time on the internet and not enough time connecting with people in person. People can take the time to think of what they would like to say or convey through text or on social media sites, but that is not the case in person. At times we feel uncomfortable talking to someone in person because everything is in the present time and there is no time to ponder upon what to say, unlike social media. At one point in time there was no television, computers, phones, etc. but now it is hard to visualize our life without them. It is true that our society has become dependent on media communication and technology whether we like it or not. It can make our lives simpler but it is not good for one to spend too much time on it as we can become antisocial and awkward.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well! I don't believe technology is exactly a bad thing. It's just people give it a bad name because they let it take over their lives.
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