LIFE WITHOUT A PHONE: Investigation #1
Let me describe your situation right now. You are sitting on a chair either made of foam or made of wood, or maybe you are lying on your bed. You are holding your phone connected to a Wi-Fi or data, scrolling on your Facebook/Instagram/Twitter account. Or maybe you are wearing your headphones watching YouTube videos or shooting for your tiktok. Or maybe some of you are laughing alone then immediately cries because of what he/she have read on wattpad. Since it’s quarantine, I believe that most of us are doing what I’ve mentioned above. Am I right?
Yes Probably I am, right. And we can’t deny the fact that this quarantine forced us to stay at our homes and we have nothing to do but to sit, lie on our bed, and use our phones.
And I cant deny that I am one of those people. By the way, I am KHEYA and welcome to another INVESTIGATION.
So as you can see it’s quarantine and most of us are just scrolling our Facebook, Instagram and twitter accounts, sitting, lying on bed and using our phones all day. Yes that is quarantine.
Q-U-A-R-A-N-T-I-N-E
Well maybe some will say “What’s wrong with quarantine? It’s not boring when you have your phones and Wi-Fi.” Well yes, you can watch anime, Korean dramas and everything that is in your watch list. You can shoot your tiktoks, take your snapchats, post on Facebook or Instagram and rant on twitter. Well they have a point, there’s no boring on internet. But have you ever thought what will happen to you if you stay up all day, all week, all month, all year facing your phones.
You might be like this.
Just Kidding.
So basically, our phones, with or without quarantine, will always be that important thing to us. That whenever there’s a damage, we will find a way just to fix it. If it was lost, we will be heart broken. And I can’t blame you all. Who wouldn’t love this kind of thing? Who wouldn’t want a smartphone anyways? Smartphone is everything!
Everybody want a smartphone, even the oldies want it. And we cant deny that fact because we are currently living on a situation where phones is necessary and gadgets are around. Social media is spreading everywhere. From Facebook to Messenger to Twitter and to Instagram. Everyone have their social media accounts and everybody is posting what is happening with their lives from second to second.
Just instance, when you are at a party and someone will say “Oy wait, picture sad ta kay i-post man ani sa Facebook.” See, everyone doesn’t want to miss a moment. They should take a picture and upload it on facebook. Yeah facebook…
Another scenario. You are having a trip and the view is so nice but you cant enjoy it. Why? For you are worrying with your pictures because it didn’t look good and it doesn’t fit your feed on Instagram.
My mind cant abosorb all of this.
As you can see, people are so obsessed with this thing. They would spend thousands just to buy a phone. And what will happen, people would become dependent on their phones. People would become addicted to it. And if that will happen, so many disadvantages will be faced.
I have read once an article entitled “Flight from Conversation” written by Sherry Turkle and my most unforgettable line from there is “Mobile Devices are so Powerful that it not only changed how people do but also who they are.” She believes that technology basically changed the way how people communicate over the years and how mobile devices limit our growth as a human beings
What Turkle said hits me so hard. After reading it I was like, “I am an addict now.”
But, have we ever thought about that? People became dependent on smartphones that they cant live their life without it. Smartphone is so useful but it turn us into addicts.
Then a question comes to me. What if we didn’t have a phone? What if smartphone is not invented? What probably would happen to us?
And that’s where our Investigation begins.
So for our investigation, I prepared three questions and conducted an interview about having a life without a phone and found out different perspectives from those who came from the old generations and those who came from today’s generation.
I interviewed two people from different generation.
Raymond
A 27 year old man who lives in the mountains. He grows up without having a phone but recently he brought a phone.
Louise
A 16 years old student who grows up with a phone and very gadget centered person.
Without further ado, let’s get right into the questions.
1. Assume that we do not have a phone, what do you think will happen with your conversations on messenger?
It’s nothing for me since I have my family and my friends along with me. With or without messenger, I can still contact them and bond with them.
Messenger is important to me. I cant contact my squad and my classmates. It will be boring if I cant chat with them.
Follow Up question:
Uhm, I doubt about that, you know we barely meet.
2. Would you still be happy if you cant take photos since you don’t have a phone?
I feel disappointed since Pictures can bring memories. But It is still okay. My heart and my mind can still remember.
3. What can you say about the other applications in your phone? If you don’t have a phone, would you still manage to survive?
Oh yes! I survived my childhood days without a phone by the way.
I couldn’t imagine a life without these apps. All of my schedule is on my google calendar. My emails are so important. My Instagram account would be a waste. I cant connect with my twitter. And what’s worse, I cant use maps whenever I want to roam around the city. It would be frustrating. My life is on my phone. I cant afford to loose it.
Based on the answers, you can assume that Louise is way more frustrated compared to Raymond. Factors affecting their answers may include the generation gap, since Louise was born when there's phones already and Raymond is way much earlier, where phones is not necessary at all. Another Factor is their location. Raymond is from the mountains while Louise is from the city. You cant deny the fact that people in the city is way more advance compared to the people in the highlands.
"If I would compare life during my times and life today, I would still choose today. Why? Because Technology made our lives easier. Unlike in the past, if you want to send message to someone, you need to send it in the form of a letter. Today, you can send message just by a click. And if you are away from your love ones you can always click that video call button and there you can see his/her face. During my days when I am studying, If I had an assignment, I need to go to library just to answer my questions. Unlike now, just one click on a google, everything is presented." Raymond said during the interview.
No matter how you hate mobile devices because it can change a person, you cant erase the fact that mobile devices is already here. You can't just easily ban mobile devices. In the first place, it was made for the benefit of the people. It's just that people abuse and use it in a wrong way.
We should still remember that we should also take time to talk to our love ones, spend time without those phones. Have a healthy living, not by just depending on your phones. Your phone is just a thing. One day it will get broken and everything in it will be gone. Focus on your physical, social, emotional, mental and spiritual life.
So that's it for the blog. If you have any ideas weather you agree or not, please leave a comment below. Thanks.
Well, yes I agree with your statement
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement. There are times that technology created boundaries to people
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement. Modern Technologies have really created a wall between different kinds of people and it is making me sad because it is real that there are people who dwelled on the usage of modern technologies.
ReplyDeleteWhatever we can find in different social media platforms might entertain us but we'll always come to the point that we'll be able to grasp the feeling of isolation. Now we seek companionship and conversation with someone.
ReplyDeleteMobile devices may be a bad influence but we cant deny that it exists. It is useful but with discipline.
ReplyDeleteI realized how important is it to talk to your loved ones and communicate with them without the use of any devices
ReplyDeleteConversing with someone I preferred to talk to them personally because I really expressed what I want to say😅.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that we should also take time to talk to our love ones and spend time with them.
ReplyDeleteOn some point, technology might be dreadful to others but we can't deny the fact that it is quite beneficial. Limit your time of using or utilize it if needed.
ReplyDeletePoint well take.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this. Modern technology may have greatly helped us but it made us more disconnected in reality.
ReplyDeleteI agree and instead of putting our time in technology always, we should communicate with our family, friends and loved ones spend quality time together.
ReplyDeleteDon't always use your time in using technology instead take your time to spend and talk with your love ones.
ReplyDeleteTrue. Technology really built a wall among people.
ReplyDeleteTechnology really affects our way of living and socializing with other people. I realized that it is better to talk face to face with other people rather than scrolling on your social medias without even learning anything.
ReplyDeleteI could relate to this. I am also dependent on my mobile devices but after hearing Sherry Turkle's points, I started to reflect on myself.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more, indeed technology helps life easier but we
ReplyDeletemust limit our usage to these devices and give importance to the real conversation.
Talking face to face is more important than talking through email or text messages, there are advantage and disadvantage of technology, it depends on how we use it.
ReplyDeleteIndeed! we should not waste our time and moments with people when we are together just to maintain our social status. It is more important to bond and communicate with each other in person.
ReplyDelete