Stay Connected
By Erin Tagan
“You know what I love?” Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters invited an arena full of fans to speculate during their show Monday night, “Is when you go to a concert…where it’s just people, onstage, playing music. That’s why we’re here. Who wants to come out and watch a bunch of computers doing things that humans can’t?”
This observation reflects a pressing issue in modern culture. We’re living in a time of perpetual technological development that calls for us to find the line between the outcomes it yields, to distinguish between what’s beneficial to advancing our society and what’s inhibiting us from natural growth as humans. Music, as an art form, proves fascinating by virtue of the natural talent, sense of rhythm, and ambition it demands from the musicians. To employ the use of computers in music is to downplay the ability of the artists who had to work meticulously toward achieving the perfect sound, a sound that computers are capable of producing effortlessly. Just as in any art form, the beauty of music lies in the drive of the artist to continuously improve his or her work. To embrace the work is to embrace the human passion behind it. Living in a world where technology is ever-growing and revered so highly, we find too often that we are unimpressed by the human potential for growth.
This is not to say that technological advances are a turn for the worse, because they definitely do offer plenty of rewarding benefits. But it’s our responsibility to determine what these benefits are—to initiate control over what we need in order to adapt to change—and what we’re taking too much advantage of.
With the rapid increase in the development of technology, our culture has been exposed to a haunting demand for convenience. We’re spoiled by conveniences like instant international communication and the choice of the “drive thru” option. We don’t have to leave the house to shop or flip through books to find information, thanks to the Internet, which we don’t even need a computer to access because most of us have it on our phones. We crave the constant stimulation of text messages or “Words With Friends.” But when we’re surrounded by friends, we avoid having actual words with them, because we’re too busy playing with our phones! Having become so accustomed to the benefits of instant gratification, we’ve been conditioned to expect it all the time and lose our patience when it’s not granted. We get caught up in the hurry of the world around us and forget how privileged we are to have access to these luxuries. As a result, it’s become our nature to feel constantly rushed, so much so that if our agenda gets slightly pushed back, we’re frustrated.
This conditioned impatience is not exclusive to American culture. Many other countries are equally as technologically evolved, and any modern culture is subject to the effects of its own development. I took a trip to London about a year and a half ago, and while riding the tube (a subway designed for the convenience of commuters), a voice came over the intercom to announce that one of the connecting lines would be temporarily closed because a person had been caught under one of the trains. The woman across from me, who was initially inconvenienced to take the earbuds out of her ears to hear the announcement, proceeded to roll her eyes at the setback this person, stuck helplessly under the tracks, had imposed on her morning commute.
The image of this woman stuck with me grotesquely, hounding me with the question, how do we sacrifice human compassion for the need for convenience? Are we so accustomed to the benefits of a technological society that, instead of viewing this occurrence as a tragic accident concerning the well-being of another person, we only see that something has gotten between us making it to work on time? How disconnected are we with others that we can’t explain to our bosses—confident that they will sympathize—that the reason we’re late is because, regardless of our individual obligations, the world is constantly moving, constantly surprising us (whether good or bad), and there are beautiful coincidences and terrible accidents that are out of our control? Can we not honestly express to another human being that, unfortunately, someone died today on the way to work, and it could have been us or them, and then think for a moment about how lucky we are to be alive and able to understand one another? It’s important to find a balance with something as influential as technology, so that we can exercise it in efforts to enhance our quality of life rather than letting it control our lives.
It’s vital for us to keep up with ever-changing times and adapt to advances, but at what point are we losing our ability to resort to nature, to fall back on more primitive practices? Yes, electricity provides us with most modern necessities and it would be very difficult to live in any modern culture without it. On the other hand, if we’re without it for a day, will we be at a loss for how to entertain ourselves without TV or cars or phone service? More than likely, yes, implying that we are, in fact, letting these modern conveniences control our lives by depending on them too much. We should be utilizing these advances to our advantage as a society, (i.e., the progression of education, screening for illness, developing medical procedures) rather than taking them for granted and using them as an excuse to avoid natural, human contact.
So, how do we find the balance between the natural and the technological that we need in order to live productively in today’s society? Let there be a distinction between them. When you’re enjoying an afternoon at the beach, reading a book, spending time with friends or family, turn off the technology. Don’t feel compelled to lean on exterior stimulation; enjoy the time you’ve set aside for relaxation from the constant obsession. Allow yourself to let go. We’re letting our relationship with technology replace our real relationships, when we should be implementing it as a tool to sustain relationships, keeping in touch with those who are far away. Share pictures, music, conversation, things that keep us connected, not distant. There is no avoiding the byproducts of technological advancement during such a revolutionary time in its development. But we have to remember that no matter how quickly we’re accelerating in terms of electronics and industrial science, nothing supersedes our capacity for human connection.Originally from San Clemente, CA, Erin Tagan moved to San Diego five years ago to attend SDSU. She received her bachelor’s degree in English and is now working as an intern for Vision Magazine. Please contact her at eetagan@gmail.com.