From Delivering a Hand-Written Letter to Creating one out of Thin-Air...Okay, so there's more to it than this- BUT- the point still remains that "there is no aspect of human relations that has not been technicalized and therefore relegated to the control of experts" (PG 88).
Say What? Postman writes how the the United Sates has, in a sense, provided experts to help us in every area of our lives. we rarely do anything without having been educating by these 'experts' on how to loves, influence, create friendships, etc. What this means for us, then, is that there is a solution to all our problems via technical means.
OR
Is this all a "fragment" of the Technopolit's imaginations? (PG 88). Can technical machinery consule our issues alone and without an expert as a guide?
Put a stamp on that thought and see how far it goes!
I agree that the "specialist" culture is OUT OF CONTROL!!! Like in another comment I posted, we need to believe in ourselves again. Why is it that people feel they need experts to tell them how to eat, bath, sleep, love, speak, etc? These are the most basic human activities! If anything, I think there needs to be a voice out there saying "Stop paying these yahoos and trust your gut!"
ReplyDeleteI wanted to assure you that you are not alone in believing that the physical, written letter is more powerful, emotional, stimulating and all around “better” than its electronic-based cousins, SMS, e-mail, and instant-messaging. I would always prefer to see the personality in someone’s handwriting, the imperfect spacing, the crossed-out letters, the flourish of a signature. But I wonder if my position is based on my experience and my age. Each generation mourns the loss of its perceived values, and though I’m only in my early thirties, I can relate to this feeling. I wish more people wrote letters, and I know there are trade-offs in using only electronic text-based communication, but perhaps electronic communication can offer rewards I haven’t yet considered. I am an “immigrant” to the electronic communication culture, not a “native” – without forsaking my own experience, I want to be open to what the natives have to teach.
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