The Flight From Conversation

In the New York Times article by Sherry Turtle called "The Flight From Conversation", the author conveys that even though we live in a technological universe where we are always communicating, we have sacrificed conversation for mere connection.  She uses many examples showing this phenomenon.  We now live in a society where we can choose to pay attention to only what interests us. All the physical face-to-face interaction has become less and less.  We are "plugging" in/out of life and she gives us many examples of situations nowadays that show this happening.  Our obsession with technology has changed how we converse with one another virtually rather than physically.

As much as I'd like to acknowledge that the author is right, by my own experience with technology I cannot say that in my own life that this is true.  She states the following opinion in her article: We are tempted to think that our little "sips" of online connection add up to a big gulp of real conversation.  but they don't.  Email, Twitter, Facebook, all of these places - in politics, commerce, romance and friendship.  but no matter how valuable, they do not substitute for conversation.  I completely disagree with this statement.  Sixteen years ago I met my husband online via a chat room.  We now have been happily married for over 15 years!  Because of the way we met we were able to make a real connection and really get to know each other.  Even at the same time, I had been dating two guys in person and still did not get the same connection with them as I did with my new boyfriend online at the time.  Because of our chance encounter online and the chance to get to know each other, I know emphatically that the power of technology did in fact contribute to the conversation we developed and was indeed more than a mere connection.  It was through the power of connecting with each other through our online conversations in the chat rooms and the emails that would follow us in the off hours, we instantly had a great connection.  So much so that it far exceeded that to those gentlemen that I knew in person first.  We could be real and honest online.  When those that date in person for the first time, one can get infatuated with the look or antics of their dating partner.  This could affect whether you choose to get to know the person furthermore.  However, because you may not have taken the time to further develop the relationship because perhaps the person was not good looking enough, you may never know what you let get away.  I feel people tend to be their real selves online.  Whether is through a post on Facebook, a "tweet" from twitter, or a simple email exchange between two people there is always a true sense of what you are feeling.  It is true, people can lie and make you believe they aren't what they type of themselves, but the same happens in real life interactions in person too.  This new world of virtual connecting allows us to be more real.  We may say and think things outloud we may not do otherwise.