The topic of technology and its impact on society is discussed in both
the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and the article “Technology was supposed to connect us.
But we're more disconnected than ever” by Rogette Harris. The novel is set in a
future, where books are banned and technology is everywhere. It follows the life
of Guy Montag as he questions the ban on books and the affect technology has on
the people around him. Similarly, the article examines the influence technology
has on society today. Although it can help make our lives easier, the
advancement of technology has a negative impact on many people around the
world. Due to the fact that
technology weakens our communication skills, consumes our attention
for large periods of time and makes many things impersonal, we are becoming
disconnected from one another. Because of technology, people are able to
communicate without having to speak to each other. In the article, Harris writes,
"Why can't we pick up the phone and talk to someone rather than send
hundreds or thousands of texts a month?" while discussing the use of
technology by humans today. Basically, Harris is questioning why humans choose
to communicate with each other by writing messages on little devices, instead
of verbally communicating. Although this may seem insignificant, it is
important because it criticizes people’s choice of communicating in a way
that will worsen their ability to verbally speak to others. In addition to
establishing different forms of communication, technology can easily consume a
person’s attention. On a daily basis, people spend continuous hours using
technology. In the novel, Guy's wife, Mildred,
spends all day sitting in her living room, watching television. She watches it
so often that when Guy asks her, "Will you turn the parlor off?" she
denies by stating, "That's my family." In other words, Mildred spends
so much time watching television that she feels as if she personally knows the
characters. This is important as it confirms that people spend hours a day
using technology and because of it, are more devoted to a screen than they are
to other human beings. Furthermore, technology has made things that were once
special, into things that are impersonal. In her article, Rogette Harris states,
“Even applying to jobs is impersonal now. Most companies have
automatic answering machines, and rather than walk a resume into an HR office,
and actually speak to someone, we now email everything.” In making this
comment, Harris is reaffirming that the use of technology has made many tasks
impersonal by giving the example of applying to a job. The fact that tasks are
becoming less personal due to technology is significant as it shows that human
interaction is reducing. Ultimately, technology is making humans disconnected
by weakening our communication skills, absorbing our attention and making tasks
impersonal. If we continue to use technology as we do now, society will
continue on its downward spiral.
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