Tuesday, March 8, 2016

The Other Lost Generation




We are constantly wandering through a digital wilderness that looks like this one. It is enticing, but very easy to get lost in. It is simple for one to wander aimlessly for hours through a beautiful garden such as this. It represents various forms of social media such as:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Snapchat
  • Blogging 
This is my trip to Butchart Gardens in British Columbia. It is a beautiful garden, but easy to get lost in.




As we search for meaning in these various forms of social media, it is easy to lose our identity and a purpose. Think of the countless hours one can spend aimlessly wandering the web. We are becoming as the lost generation of that in World War I. 


These guys look like the current lost generation. They have no purpose, and are confused. 

In our case lost does not mean completely gone, but it is interpreted as directionless and wandering. The misuse of technology has created deadbeats like these guys who have lost themselves in the digital wilderness. 




In this book by Strauss and Howe they describe the cyclical pattern that history falls under. They state that every 20-22 years their is a changing of phases. The eras are high, awakening, unraveling, and crisis. They argue that we are currently in a crisis era, but it is not the initial event that defines an era. It is the response to the events that define an era. 


Are we a lost generation that is ever learning? We claim that technology and the digital world is educating us, but we are not really coming to a knowledge. We are losing ourselves in the pursuit of whatever you want to call it. The prime characteristic of the Lost Generations was confusion. I believe that we are just that, confused. 


As Kevin Gilbert states, we rely too much on the digital world. We rely too much on the pictures that we take and upload. It is creating confusion and chaos, because we do not know how to navigate through this digital wilderness.

5 comments:

  1. The more I think about my life through technology, it definitely feels like I am going in circles never really getting anywhere or progressing. I think you're topic is interesting... and i'm excited to learn more about what you find toward this argument. Do we really have any tools to help us navigate the digital wilderness?

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  2. I thought your personal picture was clever and you could even refer to that being you and your friend to instill a sense of who you are. When looking at your structured garden it made me think of the comment in class how the algorithms that make up the social media are created to predict our interests. Because of this it can take us down meaningless paths yet that still seem structured. It seems that we are lost and yet in a controlled lost and unknowing state from those who created the "forest".
    I think you have a lot that you could use. I would try just beefing up your content a little and clarifying your ideas.

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  3. The pictures you chose were very relevant and definitely helped break up the text. I also really appreciated the fact that you embedded the video in the post--it made me as the reader much more willing to watch it. I personally am not familiar with the phrase "the lost generation of WWI". Could you explain that further?

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  4. As I read through your post I had the exact same question that Katelyn mentions, "What does the lost generation of that in World War I mean?" Another suggestion I have is to be consistent with describing your photos either before or after they are presented but don't switch this up throughout your post as it makes it complicated to follow.

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  5. I've taken this idea to heart over the past few months. I don't really use social media anymore. I believe it's useful only when we're not addicted or dependent on it. Confusion is so huge nowadays. I bet if you did a study of millennials, you could correlate with causation people goals and desire to succeed in life with their technology and social media consumption. Technology is great. But we have too much of it too fast, and it's confusing a lot of people, and too many people struggle in life because of it.

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