Blog 2- Machine Stops Claim

Bob Mondello, in his article, “Our Media, Ourselves: Are We Headed For a Matrix?”, claims that it is the physical possessions, or what he calls accumulated stuff, that defines each person as an individual. He goes on to state that as an individual’s stuff is abandoned, there is a fear that there will be a loss of humanness, that which makes each person a unique being.

Mondello supports his claim with sales data as evidence that technology is rapidly accelerating the elimination of physical items such as books, CD’s, DVD’s and printed photographs. However, Mondello does not really address that these items are still being produced, purchased, used, shared, and committed to memory. He also fails to report that as these items have become digital, new stuff, in the form of cellphones, iPod’s, tablet computers and other devices have been created. The piles of stuff referred to by Mondello may be going away, but new stuff, albeit smaller and more high tech, is taking its place. Humans are not losing touch with the artifacts of their culture, these artifacts have just evolved. A visitor to a new acquaintance’s home may be just as impressed with the newest touchscreen computer as they once were with seeing the Eagle’s Hotel California limited edition album on the shelf.

The article goes on to recall the film, The Matrix, where “actual reality is barren.” Mondello says, “Nothing physical to establish that one person is different from another. It’s a horror story in which humanity has abandoned all of what makes us human.”  Although one’s possessions may tell others something about the owner, are tangible items really the key to humanity?  Isn’t the mind really what each person has that is unique and solely their own? Mondello appears to have dismissed the idea that what is inside is what actually equates to humanness. For example, millions of immigrants once left their homes to journey to a new land called America with nothing more than the clothes they were wearing. What they took was their will to persevere, and that is found inside them, not by the accumulation of stuff.  Losing “stuff,” useless clutter, should be good for the soul, not a bad thing. Perhaps it would free people to take time for introspection, to think about important issues and appreciate other things than just over consumption of stuff. After all, why does the loss of stuff mean that there is no more nature, outdoor and physical activity, good food, and connection to others? Electronic books and communication does not equal living in a cell in an isolated hive.

E.M.Forster’s The Machine Stops, tells a tale where true isolation of humanity has occurred. In his story, humans truly had given up all personal contact, as well as exposure to the outdoors. Forster says, “But Humanity, in its desire for comfort, had over-reached itself. It had exploited the riches of nature too far. Quietly and complacently, it was sinking into decadence; and progress had come to mean the progress of the Machine.” In this fictional tale, men no longer thought for themselves, but had come to allow a Machine to take over every aspect of their lives. Mondello uses this story as an example of how a sterile environment equates to comfort, and therefore a lack of self-expression. However, this could only be the case if there were a total lack of free will among humanity. Nothing in Mondello’s story supports the idea that ridding oneself of clutter equates to surrendering our humanness.

Mondello does raise the issue of isolation and a lack of human connections as a result of the growing trend toward technology-based communication and entertainment. It is true that some individuals may retreat into seclusion if no personal connection is ever required to live. They may shun exercise, the outdoors, perhaps even electronic communication and entertainment. However, people with reclusive behavior are not new. They have made a choice to live with more isolation than others, but that is their choice, and for many, what brings them happiness. In fact, it is common to read of those in seclusion accumulating more stuff than average, not less.

Today’s over-consumptive society has created an illusion that having more stuff equates to more happiness and self-definition. This is an illusion that industry has created to continue selling more stuff. A simpler life, less cluttered, yet rich in art, literature and human connections, albeit electronic ones, may create a society that is rich not in the accumulation of stuff, but in thought.