Post by DiamondPace on Aug 9, 2011 13:05:40 GMT -5
In “The End of Solitude” by William Deresiewicz the author warns his audience of the threats technology and social networks have on the individual. He argues that with the new resources available to young adults, such as face book, texting, twitter, and blogging, people “we live exclusively in relation to others, and what disappears from our lives is solitude.” Our fear of solitude is what further drives us towards these technologies. In reading this article, I surprisingly agreed with Deresiewicz and felt that this is becoming an issue among the young people of the world today.
Although I have never thought about the problems at hand in this light before, I will agree that most teens have a desire to be known to others who would most likely have no clue of their existence if it weren’t for online social networks. Normally, the obsession with social networks in connected to the immense amount of text messages being sent and received to cell phones a day. For example, when one meets a person online online, the next step to getting to know him or her is naturally to ask for their number, which in turn leads to one more person to text message. As this number online increases, consequently, the number of text messages increase. This begins a vicious cycle that can only be stopped by quitting social networking altogether. However, teenagers have become trapped in this routine and cannot even fathom to give up the “un-loneliness” it gives them.
The article stated, “The great contemporary terror is anonymity… The goal now, it seems, is simply to become known, to turn oneself into a sort of miniature celebrity.” Television and media have played a major role in this idea by exposing the every day lives of celebrities to the public. Also, many celebrities have been discovered on internet sites, such as the popular video site, Youtube. These “internet discoveries” make the public believe that it is easier to become a celebrity by using these methods and it becomes “cool” to try and do so. Also, with the growing number of reality shows on television, and decreasing number of scripted shows, it has become evident that one does not necessarily have to have a talent in acting to be shown on the TV. If you have a crazy life, or lead a life that would be interesting to the public, many producers jump at the idea of making a show based around your life. These facts all worsen the problem at hand, that teenagers fear solitude and desire to become known. Since everyone on TV and in the magazines are famous, and seem to lead a wonderful, wealthy life, others strive to have what they have. Thus, we do whatever we can to make this happen.
In conclusion, although technology has worked to greatly improve the lives of its users and make living more efficient, the world has been granted too much of a good thing. The growing obsession to “become known” has taken over the daily lives of the young public and there is little we can do to stop this epidemic.
Although I have never thought about the problems at hand in this light before, I will agree that most teens have a desire to be known to others who would most likely have no clue of their existence if it weren’t for online social networks. Normally, the obsession with social networks in connected to the immense amount of text messages being sent and received to cell phones a day. For example, when one meets a person online online, the next step to getting to know him or her is naturally to ask for their number, which in turn leads to one more person to text message. As this number online increases, consequently, the number of text messages increase. This begins a vicious cycle that can only be stopped by quitting social networking altogether. However, teenagers have become trapped in this routine and cannot even fathom to give up the “un-loneliness” it gives them.
The article stated, “The great contemporary terror is anonymity… The goal now, it seems, is simply to become known, to turn oneself into a sort of miniature celebrity.” Television and media have played a major role in this idea by exposing the every day lives of celebrities to the public. Also, many celebrities have been discovered on internet sites, such as the popular video site, Youtube. These “internet discoveries” make the public believe that it is easier to become a celebrity by using these methods and it becomes “cool” to try and do so. Also, with the growing number of reality shows on television, and decreasing number of scripted shows, it has become evident that one does not necessarily have to have a talent in acting to be shown on the TV. If you have a crazy life, or lead a life that would be interesting to the public, many producers jump at the idea of making a show based around your life. These facts all worsen the problem at hand, that teenagers fear solitude and desire to become known. Since everyone on TV and in the magazines are famous, and seem to lead a wonderful, wealthy life, others strive to have what they have. Thus, we do whatever we can to make this happen.
In conclusion, although technology has worked to greatly improve the lives of its users and make living more efficient, the world has been granted too much of a good thing. The growing obsession to “become known” has taken over the daily lives of the young public and there is little we can do to stop this epidemic.