I wonder sometimes with the onset of technology that my people skills will diminish. I am talking about the day to day, one on one contact we have in person—the confrontations, the companionships and the friendships-- versus the relationships that rely on technology.
I will admit that e-mailing people at midnight appeals to me as a convenience. I also like being able to delete those messages from certain people. I learn about others over the internet. I can see that from the popularity of internet dating.
But I also understand the joys of having a "live" friend at my side, the smiles and the touch.
One of the joys of writing is to observe. I observe body movements, voice inflections and eyes. I revel in seeing the excitement on children’s faces. I want the picture in my mind and the memory in my heart. I want to witness it.
I learn from confrontation. I grow from confrontation. It gives me plots in my writing.
Will friendships be only on the computer in the future? Where will I find my plots? Will I have to rely on the two-dimensional relationships (computer or texting)?
“Oh, you’re exaggerating,” some people have said. They tell me it will never happen. Some accuse me of momentary lapses of sanity and exhaustion.
Maybe I am exaggerating—and maybe not. Do you think technology will cause our relationships to become two-dimensional?
Do you think this shortage of "in person" interaction will affect writing in the future?
Absolutely, I do. I don't want to sound like I'm "anti-texting" because I'm not, I text my fair share...but I think we can clearly see that it is affecting this culture's ability to communicate.
ReplyDeleteAsk some of the teachers you know if they receive papers that have the letter "u" instead of the spelled out "you" (same thing with see/"c" and are/"r") or if they frequently feature abbreviations (b/c, w/o, etc.). I've talked to some here that often run into such occurences.
But worse than that, I think the technology has hurt our listening ability. Ever seen two people text each other while sitting directly across from one another? The technology has spoiled us so much that we can't listen very well, but we are great at interpreting sentences that have no punctuation and three verbs!
Anyways, I don't want to sound like a text-hater, because I do text, but when it starts hurting key abilities that we will need in life, we need to take a step back and gather the big picture. In 10 years will real estate agents be texting clients to close a deal? If not, they'd better learn to participate in a live conversation.
Think you hit one of my hot spots?
You also might like my latest blog post. I have a video clip from the Today show featuring teens who were challenged to go 10 days without technology. It's worth a watch.
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