in the middle of my alone time...

When my professor made us read an article about teens and technology, she was right, we heard it all before. It’s almost like an invisible battle adults (40 years plus) are having with the generation that’s growing up with this technology. People such as Mark Bauerlein would even go so far as to say I am a member of the dumbest generation – though for reasons that aren’t exactly parallel to the article I have read. The piece was “the End of Solitude” by William Deresiewicz. The focus was about solitude. 

In a much simpler way, we that are growing, and dependent, with technology – cellphones, internet etc – have lost the idea of solitude. He says this is the case for every teen and young adult – however, I haven’t lost it. Recently I completed a Strengthfinder test (noted in an earlier blog). As a refresher, my first strength was intellection – which is all about one’s thoughts and intellect. Now, I just don’t understand how I could achieve such a status if I don’t spend some time to myself. As I read the article, and wrote this blog, I as alone. I go on late night walks alone. A lot of the time I spend is alone. And I also spend a lot of time on these devices and social networks. 

This is really where his argument (amidst the references to modernists and transcendentalists and Romantics) really takes place. It’s true that with the current technology and social networking, it’s difficult to truly be alone. His example of the young female sending out a hundred text messages was a great. When your friends are always at your disposal, can you ever really be alone?

I first heard about Transcendentalism in the 11^th grade. My AP English teachers felt it necessary that we read, annotate and struggle with Emerson’s Self-Reliance. To cast ourselves away from society, from conformity, from evolved technology we should be able to learn about ourselves.  This idea would be isolation – forced solitude. There’s no communication with others, let alone the ability to tweet, or better yet, Instagram the scenery with added filters. 

While I don’t consider myself a transcendentalist, I do cut myself away from society during my walks. I have my phone with me, but I don’t connect to the internet, I barely take it out my pocket. I don’t go deep into the woods because this is at night. Back then, it was easier to tear away. Now if you tear away, our society deems you missing or crazy. I wouldn’t say it’s technology holding us back from taking advantage of solitude. I would say it has been socialized into us that we must feel connected to the world. Deresiewicz did in fact bring this up – it’s one of the things the “contemporary self” wants. I think that part is correct. We have this need to feel connected and there’s the birth of social media. 

The argument has always been there – that we, my generation, is too connected to our devices. And it’s because we were taught that lonely people are depressed or lonely people are antisocial (in the sense they are bad for society). That, being by yourself will not help you lead a healthy, happy life. But when people need to think, what happens? “Shut up, I’m trying to think dammit!” or “please? Can you please just leave me alone so I can go over all of this?” Our nature has encoded in us the instructions in which we think best…