Always On
In this chapter Sherry Turkle discusses how new technologies have shaped the manner in which we interact with other individuals. Relationships have changed. In this new technological era, where one can remain online all time through various devices, Turkle wonders if being “on” effects the way we perceive others. Since our time is spent looking at screens, we are absent from what is happening in the real world. Instead of being aware of our surroundings, many are consumed by the many different possibilities that the Net provides. Some like to spend their time creating better versions of themselves on sites such as Second Life. Others are consumed in their work and feel that there is not enough time in the day to respond to overwhelming amounts of emails and texts. Turkle writes, “My concern [is] that the connected life encourages us to treat those we meet online in something of the same way we treat objects-with dispatch” (168). There are only so many hours in a day, and responding to many messages
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Rather than spending time reflecting on themselves and trying to figure how their own feelings and wants, teenagers immediately turn to their friends for their opinions. “The text-driven world of rapid response does not make self-reflection impossible but does little to cultivate it” (172). In the book the girls “shoot” texts to multiple people in hopes that they will get a response in a few seconds. When they don’t receive the results they desire, they send the text to others. Cellphones also make it possible for teens to be kept track of. Parents of this era feel more at ease because their child is simply one phone call away. Since talking to our parents multiple times a day is seen as normal, Turkle fears that that amount of connectivity is preventing teens from maturing and gaining their own sense of