Children of the Screen

I think Hannah Baylon’s article, Children of the Screen, gives us a painfully honest look at our society and what we value in life as people. If we look thirty, twenty, or even ten years back in time, we can see a society that is not obsessed with the latest video game or giant television, but rather one that values more simple things in life—things that do not require us to sit inside and veg in front of a screen. We are completely surrounded and, in some ways, I think we are controlled by the media. For example, for many of us, the media dictates what we should wear, who we should look like, what we should own to be happy, and what things are most important in life. Like Hannah Baylon said, most of us have gotten into a habitual way of living. We go to work (or school) for most of the day, come home exhausted, and then all we want to do for the rest of the night is sit back, relax, and watch sports or some other program. I, myself, have tried not to fall into this cycle, and for the most part I have been successful, but it is very tempting to dive into a comfortable routine. I sometimes find myself dropping my backpack onto the floor, laying down on my bed and either turning on the T.V. or checking my facebook profile (or both) immediately when I come back from classes. However, I am not one of the people that does this every day, as Baylon’s article suggests. I find pleasure in playing outside, going to the Rec, and playing the piano to pass the time. I think that enjoying nature, hanging out with friends, and picking up a hobby are essential in preserving our “true nature” as humans. We were not meant to sit all day and watch television or play video games. Although I think that it is important to relax and veg every once in a while, it is more important to be spontaneous and use our bodies the way they were meant to be used—in motion. I am concerned about our future as humans. In my lifetime, I have seen small, tube T.V.s transform into huge flat-screens and amazingly realistic video games sprout from weird, pixilated digital creations. I can’t even imagine what the next fifty years will bring in terms of technology. I can’t even begin to imagine what our children and grandchildren will live like and how their lives will be affected by growing technology. My hope for them is that they will not grow up with their faces constantly thrust in front of a screen. Unfortunately, as time goes on, that looks more and more like a future reality. If I had to choose one upside to our screen age reality, even though there may be quite a few, I would say that we are kept well informed by the media and news. We are able to find information or breaking news in a split second via the internet and television. Still, overall, I think that the cons outweigh the pros as our society slowly slips into our screen age reality.