Just thought I'd give my two cents.
I am uncertain if I will be able to make myself clear in what I am about to write and if I am unable to, then please flame away(hopefully I can take it). It has been repeatedly been written recently that the new generation to inhabit this world is losing contact with some fundamental experiences shared by humans from previous generations. These fundamental experiences are required in order to promote a healthy sense of being. The problem I face writing this is that, to an unknown audience, I feel as though I must elaborate on everything I am writing so as to avoid confusion. I do not know who any of you are and I have not shared any common experiences with any of you outside this forum, as such there is little common ground for communication and a high chance for misunderstandings to evolve. But has this not always been the case? There has always been room for misunderstandings as none of us really know what anyone else is trying to say, if we even know what we ourselves are saying most of the time.
What this new generation is learning to cope with is a written tradition that has taken on a new shape with technology. The common experiences that were once shared when people got together are now being shared through various other mediums. Every medium has had its limitations and I do not think that it will change with technology to help us. Marshall Mcluhan’s famous statement “the medium is the message” is very relevant to this. As the medium changes, the message also needs to change accordingly to fit the need. That is the problem being faced right now. How do we fit the message to the medium. The message, as it always has been, is man’s need to communicate what he has experienced. The medium now is the internet and advances in telephone technology.
The problem is how do we adapt our lives to suit this medium? How do we combine our oral tradition with this new written tradition that is emerging? It is hoped that this new written tradition will force us to be more articulate regarding the expression of our experiences. However, and I believe this is the concern that most of us feel, we have not yet learnt to adapt to this technology. In order for this technology to work for our benefit, we need to have a better understanding of who we are and what we wish to express. These two elements are not, in my opinion, properly nurtured. Of course, one may argue that schools are now focusing on self esteem to help build character; however, it is hard to build self esteem in large classrooms. With everyone feeling important, how can anyone have a proper sense of self? This tension is not only promoting a greater sense of the old ‘us’ and ‘them’ concept but also propelling youths to find expression in virtual worlds online. For me, this is where the problem lies. When one’s self worth is related to a virtual online world, the distinction between public life and private life becomes perplexing. The private life is needed for self reflection. However, with sex tapes and places like YouTube and Mypace and various other online worlds, our public life has taken over and there is very little left for private life. Without the private life for self reflection, how can one communicate one’s experience on this world? I hope this makes sense to someone out there.
