Diatribe on the evils of Text Messaging
Our society has become a safe-haven for the wimp and the cowardly. For individuals who avoid the confrontation, the honesty and sometimes the difficulty of face-to-face communication. Gone is the subtle art of body language, replaced instead by the intricate etiquette of cutesy shortcuts (the meaning of “cu” instead of “see you”, “LOL” replaced by the joy of hearing true laughter, and of course the sly wink ;) expressed in punctuation). As a form of communication our technology is incredibly convenient—cheap, instantaneous and reliable. However, its affects on our society are more detrimental than we realize. People have the ability to hide behind their technology-- send a text message rather than have a difficult conversation. Avoid true communication at all costs. People no longer need to know how to have a conversation if all communication is expressed in 20 word segments. We have the ability to screen our feelings, our emotions and our words before sending them to make sure we aren’t giving away too much. Things that would be shown obviously in person can be easily hidden within the letters of a text message. Emotions disappear replaced by feelingless impassive letters. We also lose the subtle meanings expressed by the voice and the body. “Great shoes!” can have different meanings depending on whether it is said with enthusiasm or a raised eyebrow. Deeper meanings are lost within the technology. But I don’t mean to say that the technology is pointless, just that people have begun to hide behind it. It is used as a shield to avoid things that are difficult. Facing someone to give them bad news is difficult but often necessary, however now it is easier to send a quick text message to someone and immediately forget about it and them. Before this technology people were forced to say things in person, to face the difficult issues that exist in life. So who is being cheated? The person receiving the brush-off text message obviously (for you are being brushed off if you receive a text that should have been delivered in person) but perhaps the person sending it loses also. The longer one can hide within technology, the more true communication is destroyed and any ability for it in the future. I am angry at the loss of true communication and the cowardice that accompanies text messaging, but I also pity the people who have lost the ability to have a real conversation and face things that may be tough head-on.
Our society has become a safe-haven for the wimp and the cowardly. For individuals who avoid the confrontation, the honesty and sometimes the difficulty of face-to-face communication. Gone is the subtle art of body language, replaced instead by the intricate etiquette of cutesy shortcuts (the meaning of “cu” instead of “see you”, “LOL” replaced by the joy of hearing true laughter, and of course the sly wink ;) expressed in punctuation). As a form of communication our technology is incredibly convenient—cheap, instantaneous and reliable. However, its affects on our society are more detrimental than we realize. People have the ability to hide behind their technology-- send a text message rather than have a difficult conversation. Avoid true communication at all costs. People no longer need to know how to have a conversation if all communication is expressed in 20 word segments. We have the ability to screen our feelings, our emotions and our words before sending them to make sure we aren’t giving away too much. Things that would be shown obviously in person can be easily hidden within the letters of a text message. Emotions disappear replaced by feelingless impassive letters. We also lose the subtle meanings expressed by the voice and the body. “Great shoes!” can have different meanings depending on whether it is said with enthusiasm or a raised eyebrow. Deeper meanings are lost within the technology. But I don’t mean to say that the technology is pointless, just that people have begun to hide behind it. It is used as a shield to avoid things that are difficult. Facing someone to give them bad news is difficult but often necessary, however now it is easier to send a quick text message to someone and immediately forget about it and them. Before this technology people were forced to say things in person, to face the difficult issues that exist in life. So who is being cheated? The person receiving the brush-off text message obviously (for you are being brushed off if you receive a text that should have been delivered in person) but perhaps the person sending it loses also. The longer one can hide within technology, the more true communication is destroyed and any ability for it in the future. I am angry at the loss of true communication and the cowardice that accompanies text messaging, but I also pity the people who have lost the ability to have a real conversation and face things that may be tough head-on.
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