Using Technology Helps Avoid Awkward Conversations, Leads to Lonely Habits

How does Turkle's claim challenge Mike Wesch's call for digital community and connection, if at all?

Sherry Turkle, in her article The Flight from Conversation, raises some points that challenge Mike Wesch's drive for more integrated use of technology in the classroom that he focused on his article The Old Revolution.  The way I see it, Turkle and Wesch are both trying to solve a problem that society has always had to face: the feeling of loneliness.

Both of these thinkers are trying to battle this major problem with somewhat extreme measures.  Turkle is arguing that, overall, technology is ruining society.  She may have a point.  Her anecdotes about the lack of face-to-face conversations in the workplace are eyebrow-raising.  I see it myself, at work and elsewhere in the real world.  There is a definite disconnect in between people in the real world.  The free time we used to have to chat with people, have random run-ins with someone on the subway or walking down the street, have diminished since we all have headphones on.  Turkle's right.  This isn't a great part of our society.  

Unfortunately, I don't know if what to do about the take-over of social technology and the anti-social behavior in the real-world.  Turkle's suggestion to unplug for a day just seems unreasonable, due to the nature of how business is run these days.  Perhaps technology will get to be so good that we'll have to start to have full conversations with people more often, only virtually.

And I think that's Wesch's argument: technology is here to stay, no matter what we do.  The way my freshman acted with their iPhones last year made that abundantly clear.  They nearly burst when they couldn't look at their cell phones.  When they did have their phones out, it was like a switch went off in the room.  It's a new, strange world.    

This doesn't mean that Turkle's point, that this is increasing loneliness and therefore not making humanity more happy, is a solid one.  This reminds me of a famous line, found in the movie The Magnificent Ambersons, directed by Orson Welles, who also directed Citizen Kane.  The protagonist of the film, Eugene (played by Joseph Cotton), is involved with the start of the car industry.  George, the antagonist, is saying that he hates the rise of cars, and wishes they would stay away, and that the world was better without them.  The exact conversation is found below.

Courtesy of IMDB.

George: I said, automobiles are a useless nuisance. Never amount to anything but a nuisance. They had no business to be invented.

Maj. Amberson: So your devilish machines are going to ruin all your old friend, eh Gene? Do you really think they're going to change the face of the land?

Eugene: They're already doing it major and it can't be stopped. Automobiles...

[cut off by George]

George: Automobiles are a useless nuisance.

George: What did you say George?

George: I said automobiles are a useless nuisance. Never amount to anything but a nuisance and they had no business to be invented.

Jack: Of course you forget that Mr. Morgan makes them, also did his share in inventing them. If you weren't so thoughtless, he might think you were rather offensive.

Eugene: I'm not sure George is wrong about automobiles. With all their speed forward they may be a step backward in civilization. May be that they won't add to the beauty of the world or the life of the men's souls, I'm not sure. But automobiles have come and almost all outwards things will be different because of what they bring. They're going to alter war and they're going to alter peace. And I think men's minds are going to be changed in subtle ways because of automobiles. And it may be that George is right. May be that in ten to twenty years from now that if we can see the inward change in men by that time, I shouldn't be able to defend the gasoline engine but agree with George - that automobiles had no business to be invented.

I tend to agree with Wesch and Welles: technology is here and it's here to stay, for better and for worse.  We may as well embrace it and try to integrate new ideas and higher-level thinking in technology.  The way students currently use iPhones is not with tasks I'd consider higher level thinking: texting, texting photos, and playing games aren't exactly rocket science.  But if we tweak a few things, there is definitely a way to make these technologies more academically stimulating.  

Then maybe we'll have better conversations?