Student Example: Two-Article Example—two sources

 

“Yes, You Are Addicted. Now Put Down Your iPod and Cell Phone.”

     In the his essay “Society Is Dead: We Have Retreated into the iWorld,” written by author Andrew Sullivan, it is suggested suggests that certain technology, like the iPod, is effecting affecting the way people interact with one another. Sullivan gives the example of people walking “. . . down the street in their own MP3 cocoon, bumping into others, deaf to small social cues, shutting out anyone not in their bubble” (337). In this day and age Today it is nearly impossible to go a day without technology. Most of today’s technology has become necessary to the way businesses operate and grow, and because of this we have become dependent on things the Internet and cell phones. With this said, there is a great deal of excessive technology that society has now become addicted to merely for entertainment purposes. With this said, society has now become addicted to a great deal of excessive technology merely for entertainment purposes. I share the same opinion with Sullivan that these excessive devices like video games and iPhones have become social crutches which are alienating people from one another. 

     Sullivan writes that boredom is a positive feeling because “we are forced to find our own means to overcome it” (379). As a small child I would often complain of being bored. In response to these complaints my mother would suggest I find something to do quickly, or she would find something for me. Knowing her option would surely involve a dust rag or toilet brush, I promptly found something to do on my own. Typical adventures included climbing trees or making up silly games with my brother. You wouldn’t think that we could play a baseball game with only two people, but we did, and it was great fun. Sometimes we made up imaginary players; naturally, it was always their fault for a loss. This was thirty years ago and sadly in today’s world today people would rather turn to the mindless entertainment of iPhones and videos with ready-made images instead of reading a good book or engaging in conversation with a friend. than read a good book that would exercise their imaginations.

A USA Today issued an article states, “The average American home now has more television sets than people.” I can honestly say this is true in my house. We also have three iPods, three Xbox consoles (no I am not kidding), three computers, and three iPhones. As I sit at one computer writing this essay, my husband is on his laptop shopping for a new truck, my daughter is watching Hannah Montana in her bedroom while looking at her iPhone, and my son is in his bedroom playing Xbox Live with his friends. Even though we are home together, we are all sitting in separate rooms of the house fixed to our electronic devices. Surely, we are not an exception in today’s common household. Because of this excess of technology, many families miss out on valuable interaction time every day. 

Not only is technology alienating families inside the home, addiction to it has commandeered our entertainment while walking to school, riding the bus to work, sitting in the hallway, and even standing in line at the grocery store. I guess the feeling is why should we interrupt our favorite song to see how the grocery checker’s day is going. Many people can’t even enjoy sitting with a friend at a restaurant without checking their cell phone at least once during the meal. Even heartfelt letters are now replaced with quick emails and texts. In Sullivan's words, this is “society without the social” (378).   

Yes, technology provides us with very cool toys, and as Sullivan points out, our recreational devices can be a “. . . chance to slip away for a while from everydayness” (378). But this entertainment comes at a cost. When was the last time we had a long conversation with our neighbor? Or the last time we took a jog in the park? Unfortunately, not everyone can remember the last time they just sat down quietly and did nothing at all. The desire to constantly be entertained by technology is depriving our lives of simple blessings and the wonders of imagination. Family life is being compromised and opportunities are being missed.  I am not saying that everyone should throw their tech-toys in the trash, but put them away more often and enjoy life.

 

Works Cited

            

“Average home has more TVs than people.”  USA Today 21 Sept. 2006. 14 Nov. 2010 http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-09-21-homes-tv_x.htm.

Sullivan, Andrew. “Society Is Dead: We Have Retreated into the iWorld.” Viewpoints. Ed. W. Royce Adams, 7th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. (377-379).