With the advent of the twenty-first century came the exponential proliferation of digital sharing. It seems today that everything is online, and that you can practically live your entire life without ever tearing your eyes away from your screen. This plugged-in lifestyle supports everything from ordering food and clothes online to holding a job without leaving your house to receiving updates on all your family and friends without once speaking to them or, dare I even say it, seeing them in PERSON. And that is the problem with modern discourse.
Conversations today seem to revolve around monosyllabic responses and cryptic emojis that try but don't quite replace the words that people just can't seem to formulate. Today’s communication consists almost exclusively of caustic sarcasm, ambiguous metaphors, and obscure references that make holding an intellectual discussion nearly impossible. It is oft difficult to locate a fellow raconteur with which to exchange banter permeated by waggish wit.
This is not to say, however, that communication is decreasing. Quite the opposite. There’s likely never been more communication in all the history of the spoken language. Technological advancements have effectively eliminated the distance barrier and through a plethora of messaging apps have allowed your average Joe to have a casual chat with someone halfway across the world. There’s certainly no shortage of dialogue, but it’s the content of said dialogue that bothers me.
The typical individual scarcely has the mental aptitude to hold a satisfactory conversation with a stranger without lapsing into awkward silences thirty seconds into poorly attempted small talk. Apathetic teenagers forgo in-depth discussion of the world state, opting instead for occasional grunts of hunger, tiredness, or lethargic listlessness. Social media is a particular menace to general academia. Students scroll through headlines without reading the finer details, repeating them to others to have a semblance of understanding without even consulting another source to ascertain reliability.
With the sheer amount of information available, one would presume the content of everyday conversation to be rife with intellectual discovery, far-reaching adventures, and innovative technological advancements. The information of the universe is at our fingertips with smartphones, tablets, and watches, yet we use it most often to peruse cat videos and send rude messages to internet strangers. Why the disparity? Why does it seem that the more we are able to do, the less we actually accomplish?
Perhaps we are simply not aware of the capabilities of the technology available to us. Perhaps education regarding the possibilities and competences of modern living would increase our mental capacities and quality of life.
Or perhaps not.
It’s possible, even probable, that the citizenry is content with the general complacency of the social order. The general populace has grown indifferent to the state of humanity, instead satisfied to sit back and simply watch as events unfold. The world is full of talking, but no one is really paying any attention. No communication occurs, no conversation ensues toward the goal of a solution to the major problems of the day.
Such is the problem with modern discourse.
