At some point in their life, a person has witnessed two or
more friends gathered in order to spend quality time together. In past years
this meant seeing the friends participate in board games, sports, movies or
other activities. However, today friends gathering to spend time together may
be a variety of activities, however, at the center of the friends’ interactions
will be the time for all of the friends to text another person who is not
there. Texting has shifted what friends do together, and even more so how
people interact. Texting targets a demographic of people whose ages range
anywhere from twelve to thirty-five. Why has society been encouraging
interactions through texting more than interactions face-to-face with another
human? Whatever the reason, the increased amount of texting as the message of
the media has had profound impacts on the interpersonal relationships of those
who engage in it, such as weaker friendships, less social skills and the inability
to connect with other people.
While
texting has the ability to connect people to one another, popular culture ideas
of texting do not promote the ability for closer relationships over texting.
For one, texting connotes the convenience of the other person. Unlike other
forms of communication, especially interpersonal, texting places the receiver
solely in control of the situation. Instead of trying to meet the needs of a
friend when they need help, texting sends a message that a person can answer
whenever, and that it is completely acceptable. The medium of texting sends the
message that convenience of responding whenever trumps the friend’s needs, even
if it is an emergency situation. Texting causes problems in communication
because of its innate nature to cause misunderstandings. With the words people
choose to send in their texts, the diction and connotation of the meanings of
the content of the text can be misinterpreted. In changing to a form of
communication that is faster and convenient, the message of the medium states
the variety of interpretations that can be taken from a simple and well-meaning
text. Further it promotes the popular cultural
value of popularity. Popularity has always been based off of how many people a
person talks to as well as how much information the person knows about
different situations. With texting, a person can give the illusion of
accomplishing both requirements for popularity. Firstly, a person would be in
public, possibly even with friends, but be bombarded by messages from other
people all at the same time. Second, with all of the messages from other
people, the individual would be well informed about what is going on in the
lives of those around the individual. However, even though the person would be
so informed, they would miss out on the one-on-one person interactions that are
invaluable.
Texting
may be affecting many people in their ability to have social interactions with
the people around them. People learn to interact with one another through
interactions that are unscripted, in person, and once done cannot be undone.
However, texting is changing that system dramatically. It appeals to the
popular cultural narrative of being able to control the situation around one’s
self. In texting, it gives the ability to phrase, organize and develop messages
to be sent over time that a person can be in control of any situation. This
concept also connotes empowerment that a person uses words well. However, in a
person’s daily interpersonal interactions there is hardly ever a choice to
craft one’s words to make the ideal impression. The new media medium of texting
changes how people interact from face-to-face to over screens where body
language, intonation of voice, and other indicators of certain feelings,
concepts or ideas are taken out of context.
Thank you for the comment. You as well have a great essay I really like your introduction and believe that you have very good points and I definetly agree with your message. Very nice rough draft, I bet the final draft will be even better
ReplyDeleteThe medium of texting is definitely affecting popular culture and society as a whole. I think you bring up a very good point by illustrating that texting is isolating individuals even though they might be in the presence of others. In that sense the message it delivers is that of a possible disconnection from society, and this disconnection could have various detrimental influences on pop culture. I would recommend you write a couple of sentences discussing the larger impact of texting on pop culture. IS it a good or bad trend? What could be some of the consequences of texting? I hope these ideas help!
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned in your essay, texting definitely caters to many cultural values in the United States. For instance, it caters to the value of popularity, as you mentioned, however, in my opinion it has also created its own myths. Much like our readings on the effects of Facebook, texting offers a false sense of intimacy with somebody you might not truly know. It seems advertising have created the myth stating the more people in your contacts, the more accepted you are in society. As our readings suggest, this simply is not true. The majority of people rarely speak to half the people on their contacts list on a regular basis. It is also very important to realize when reading a quote from somebody that the medium, in this case texting, also contributes to what is being said. When somebody texts another person they are under the illusion that the conversation is private. However, many people find out this is often not true, and their words are reposted for anybody to see. This being said, if somebody else is to read the statement sent by text, it could be marginally misinterpreted by the reader if the reader does not understand that the statement was sent by text. The fact that texting is often perceived as private, and shared between a friend or loved one, an individual can conclude that the text might be a inside joke, a sarcastic statement, or a rant because a person was simply mad the moment they sent to text. It is very important to understand the medium before attempting to decipher the meaning of the message.
ReplyDeleteYou have a really great start! I love the introduction; it's to the point and also very informative. Texting does has it's benefits, but also it hinders. Like you and I were talking about, it makes it easier to communicate, but then when you're face to face you don't know exactly how to say it or you start to forget how to have a conversation. Your comment about texting letting you create yourself in a new way is very interesting. It lets you hide behind a phone and sort of lead a double life sometimes. Like I said it can be beneficial, especially for people that don't have the choice to communicate with their friends and family face to face. You have to ask yourself if the benefits out weigh the harm.
ReplyDelete