500 Word Draft:
My relationship with technology is most accurately described as navigating through a wilderness. Technology is a broad term that consists of many different aspects of daily life. There is the internet, one of the most prevalent technologies, artificial intelligence, television, and many others. Information is given to us through all of these different platforms, and some of it can be false or biased. It is our job to sift through the negative information to find what we are looking for. That is why technology is a wilderness. It is often tough to navigate, is dense with information, and can be a bit dangerous or mysterious. Spending long amounts of time in both technology and the wilderness can change you as a person and alter your viewpoints. They give you a different perspective on life by exposing you to new ideas. Sherry Turkle displays her viewpoint in “The Empathy Diaries.” In my experience, technology has not posed as big a problem for my generation as it has for newer generations. That being said, I agree with Turkle’s opinions, but not to the extremes she proposes.
Technology improves my literacy and conversations with others. Many conversations are based around technology to begin with. We talk about television, social media, and more. Turkle explains how technology will hinder our ability to converse with one another. This does limit other sources of learning, but technology itself is a source to learn from. Technology doesn’t just provide useless platforms, it helps us make stronger, more meaningful conversations. There are times in which conversation is necessary online. Skills can be developed and carried over to the real world. Developing better words and sentences in conversation will help me be present and less distracted. Activities such as texting and reading online can have shallow information that will not help with literacy. The reader has to find the information that will benefit them. If they can do this, their ability to read and learn will improve.
Reading and writing go hand in hand. The more I read works from better writers than myself, the more strategies I can use in my own writing. The internet has a vast amount of writing, anywhere from professional scholars to beginners. I’ve read many research papers, articles, and works I could barely comprehend, all to improve my literacy.
Television is a unique source of information. Although it is primarily used for entertainment, it has documentaries and news about current events. These nonfictional sources are the ones I’ve used to develop better conversations with my peers. Documentaries and real world events have helped me learn about not just my environmental science major, but issues and topics that can pertain to others. This is how I have had meaningful conversations with friends, family, and classmates. Even the entertainment aspect of television has benefited my writing. Movies taught me about story structure, character development, and other writing techniques. There’s many movie genres that correlate with writing genres. Understanding movies can help with reading and understanding literature.
Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings of others. Cellphones are another notable piece of technology that happens to lack empathy. They are often utilized for their ability to communicate with others conveniently through texts and messages. What they lack is meaningful conversation. It is difficult to read people’s thoughts, expressions, and feelings off of words alone. I prefer to make phone calls because you can really get a feel for what the other person is saying, and it is easier to convey my ideas.
“And for the audience that feels defeated, whose members mourn an ‘inevitable’ flight from conversation and see themselves as bystanders, I make another case: This is the wrong time to step back. Those who understand how conversation works—no matter what their ages—need to step up and pass on what they know” (Turkle 350). In this passage, Turkle is suggesting a call to action, suggesting the issue of meaningful conversation is widespread and prevalent in society. I find this hard to believe. Maybe it is because I surround myself with literate people, or that I went to a so-called “smart” school. Either way, Turkle has more knowledge on this subject than myself, and I trust and value her opinion.
800 Word Draft:
My relationship with technology is most accurately described as navigating through a wilderness. Technology is a broad term that consists of many different aspects of daily life. There is the internet, one of the most prevalent technologies, artificial intelligence, television, and many others. Information is given to us through all of these different platforms, and some of it can be false or biased. It is our job to sift through the negative information to find what we are looking for. That is why technology is a wilderness. It is often tough to navigate, is dense with information, and can be a bit dangerous or mysterious. Spending long amounts of time in both technology and the wilderness can change you as a person and alter your viewpoints. They give you a different perspective on life by exposing you to new ideas. Sherry Turkle displays her viewpoint on this matter in “The Empathy Diaries.” In my experience, technology has not posed as big a problem for my generation as it has for newer generations. That being said, I agree with Turkle’s opinion that technology hinders communication and empathy, but not to the extremes she proposes.
Technology is integral to improve literacy and conversations with others. Turkle explained that conversations “…are the cornerstone of early development and continue throughout life (Turkle 344). This means that without conversation, we lack necessary skills needed in life. Many conversations are based around technology to begin with. We talk about television, social media, and more. Turkle mentions how technology will hinder our ability to converse with one another, comparing it to “…a new ‘silent spring’” (Turkle 344). Turkle is saying that the future will be much quieter with less conversation, like a spring with no bird calls.
Although technology might impact our ability to converse, it does provide other helpful skills. As Turkle puts it, “Virtual learning is a place to explore the self” (Turkle 345). This indicates that, in some instances, the internet is a projection of the self. Whether you are exploring a vast virtual world, or creating a unique character, a part of yourself is put into the design. It is important to reflect on this, as you can learn a lot about yourself. There are also times in which conversation is necessary online. Some parts of these conversations can be developed and carried over to the real world. Online messages can help develop stronger words and sentences in conversation. Another beneficial part of technology is that it can be shallow with information that won’t help with literacy. The reader has to find the information that will benefit them. If they can do this, their ability to read and learn will improve.
Reading and writing go hand in hand. The more I read works from better writers than myself, the more strategies I can use in my own writing. The internet has a vast amount of writing, anywhere from professional scholars to beginners. I’ve read many research papers, articles, and works I could barely comprehend, all to improve my literacy. Television is a unique source of information. Although it is primarily used for entertainment, it has documentaries and news about current events. These nonfictional sources are the ones I’ve used to develop better conversations with my peers. Documentaries and real world events have helped me learn about not just my environmental science major, but issues and topics that can pertain to others. This is how I have had meaningful conversations with friends, family, and classmates. Even the entertainment aspect of television has benefited my writing. Movies have taught me about story structure, character development, and other writing techniques. There’s many movie genres that correlate with writing genres. Understanding movies can help with reading and understanding literature.
Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings of others. Cellphones are another notable piece of technology that happens to lack empathy. They are often utilized for their ability to communicate with others conveniently through texts and messages. What they lack is meaningful conversation. It is difficult to read people’s thoughts, expressions, and feelings off of words alone. I prefer to make phone calls because you can really get a feel for what the other person is saying, and it is easier to convey your ideas.
In her passage, “Empathy Diaries,” Sherry Turkle reveals that technology negatively impacts society’s ability to converse face-to-face with others. In contrast, I believe that technology offers both positive and negative effects towards communication and empathy, through a variety of platforms and techniques.
“And for the audience that feels defeated, whose members mourn an ‘inevitable’ flight from conversation and see themselves as bystanders, I make another case: This is the wrong time to step back. Those who understand how conversation works—no matter what their ages—need to step up and pass on what they know” (Turkle 350). In this passage, Turkle is suggesting a call to action, suggesting the issue of meaningful conversation is widespread and prevalent in society. I find this hard to believe. Maybe it is because I surround myself with literate people, or that I went to a so-called “smart” high school. Either way, Turkle has more knowledge on this subject than myself, and I trust and value her opinion.
Final Draft: 1000+ words
My relationship with technology is most accurately described as navigating through a wilderness. Technology is a broad term that consists of many different aspects of daily life. There is the internet, one of the most prevalent technologies, artificial intelligence, television, and many others. Information is given to us through all of these different platforms, and some of it can be false or biased. It is our job to sift through the negative information to find what we are looking for. That is why technology is a wilderness. It is often tough to navigate, is dense with information, and can be a bit dangerous or mysterious. Spending long amounts of time in both technology and the wilderness can change you as a person and alter your viewpoints. They give you a different perspective on life by exposing you to new ideas. Sherry Turkle, director of the Initiative on Technology and Self at MIT, displays her viewpoint on this matter in “The Empathy Diaries.” In this passage, she explains how conversation is the cure for poor communication due to technology. In my experience, technology has not posed as big a problem for my generation as it has for newer generations. That being said, I agree with Turkle’s opinion that technology hinders communication and empathy, but not to the extremes she proposes.
Technology is integral to improve literacy and conversations with others. Turkle explained that conversations “…are the cornerstone of early development and continue throughout life” (Turkle 344). This means that without conversation, we lack necessary skills needed in life. It is imperative that young children and adults adopt communication skills, and not just the language of technology. Many conversations are based around technology to begin with. We talk about television, social media, and more. Turkle mentions how technology will hinder our ability to converse with one another, comparing it to “…a new ‘silent spring’” (Turkle 344). Turkle is saying that the future will be much quieter with less conversation, like a spring with no bird calls. Although technology might impact our ability to converse in the future, it does provide other helpful skills. As Turkle puts it, “Virtual learning is a place to explore the self” (Turkle 345). This indicates that, in some instances, the internet is a projection of the self. Whether you are exploring a vast virtual world, or creating a unique character, a part of yourself is put into the design. It is important to reflect on this, as you can learn a lot about yourself. There are also times in which conversation is necessary online. Some parts of these conversations can be developed and carried over to the real world. Online messages can help develop stronger words and sentences in conversation. Another beneficial part of technology is that it can be shallow with information that won’t help with literacy. The reader has to find the information that will benefit them. If they can do this, their ability to read and learn will improve.
Reading and writing go hand in hand. The more I read works from better writers than myself, the more strategies I can use in my own writing. The internet has a vast amount of writing, anywhere from professional scholars, to beginners, vloggers, news articles, etc. I’ve read many research papers, articles, and works I could barely comprehend to improve my literacy, which is yet another skill provided by technology. Television offers a unique source of information. Although it is primarily used for entertainment, it has nonfictional sources like documentaries and news about current events. These nonfictional sources are the ones I’ve used to develop better conversations with my peers. Documentaries and real world events have helped me learn about not just my environmental science major, but issues and topics that can pertain to others. This is how I have had meaningful conversations with friends, family, and classmates. Even the entertainment aspect of television has benefited my writing. Movies have taught me about story structure, character development, and other writing techniques. There’s many movie genres that correlate with writing genres. Understanding movies can help with reading and understanding literature.
Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings of others. Cellphones are another notable piece of technology that happens to lack empathy. They are often utilized for their ability to communicate with others conveniently through texts and messages. What they lack is meaningful conversation. It is difficult to read people’s thoughts, expressions, and feelings off of words alone. I prefer to make phone calls because you can really get a feel for what the other person is saying, and it is easier to convey your ideas.
“And for the audience that feels defeated, whose members mourn an ‘inevitable’ flight from conversation and see themselves as bystanders, I make another case: This is the wrong time to step back. Those who understand how conversation works—no matter what their ages—need to step up and pass on what they know” (Turkle 350). In this passage, Turkle is suggesting a call to action, suggesting the issue of meaningful conversation is widespread and prevalent in society. Relating back to the idea of empathy, Turkle feels that meaningful conversation is directly related to empathy. I find this claim hard to believe. I understand that technology can alter how we view communication and how we perform empathy, but I don’t believe that it’s to this degree. Maybe it is because I surround myself with literate people, or that I went to a so-called “smart” high school. Either way, Turkle has more knowledge on this subject than myself, and I trust and value her opinion.
In her passage, “Empathy Diaries,” Sherry Turkle reveals that technology negatively impacts society’s ability to converse face-to-face with others. In contrast, I believe that technology offers both positive and negative effects towards communication and empathy, through a variety of platforms and techniques. Technology is not erasing communication from society, but rather changing how we go about communicating with each other. I am certain that we will have more technological breakthroughs in the future, and we will once again have to overcome the obstacles that they bring us.
