Summary Of Sherry Turkle's Growing Up Tethered

Improved Essays
Disconnected In the reading Growing Up Tethered by Sherry Turkle she describes her experience of talking to high school students about being more connected to a cellphone than the world around them. I completely agree cellphones and other devices that keep us connected via web, text or call causes us to lose necessary physical interactions with other people. So much attention can be drawn from cellphones without having to leave the house, some people have friends all over the country that they may have never met. Cellphones give a sense of popularity being able to talk to people and express feelings without being face to face gives some people more confidence. Turkle states “but they also view it as one might the weather: to be taken for granted, …show more content…
Young adults or teenagers use their phone whenever they encounter a problem such as being lost or not knowing how to spell a word, just simply google it. Young adults are in a critical stage of life where decision making is vital and without the proper teaching or physical interaction some important skills can be missed. I agree with Turkle when she says, “Today’s adolescents have no less need than those of previous generations to learn empathic skills, to think about their values and identify, and to manage and express feelings (430).” Physical interaction is important at a young age to be able to know how to talk to others about certain problems and to address problems in real life is necessary. Teenagers should have hobbies and socialize to understand what they like and what they want to do in life by experiencing different aspects of …show more content…
When I turned thirteen I got my first phone it didn’t do much but slide up to text or call and the first thing my mother told me is that if she calls my cellphone that I better pick up the first time. I went from having freedom and being independent to my mother being able to contact me or if I ran into trouble I could contact her and she could take care of my problem. Parent feel as if they should be able to get in touch with their children whenever they want and teenagers believe they need their personal space and need to be left alone when they leave. Turkle states, “Parents want their children to answer their phones, but adolescents need to separate (431)”. Teenagers even though out going and social whether it be online or not still need space, they need time to themselves for many reasons it could be school or something personal. I agree with needed space, teenagers these days are stressed with a lot going on and parents can add to the stress. I think text messages are more efficient because they can be answered and checked more discretely as to calls they are interruptive and spontaneous but I also believe if there is a call that it is urgent and must be answered. I believe there could be a middle ground between texting and calling that could be beneficial to adults

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The American society has changed drastically over the years. Imagine living without a cell phone, computer, or even a car. Without these components in life, we would be lost as we’ve grown used to these tools. A need for help is just a call away. A need for groceries is just a car trip away.…

    • 510 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The article Growing Up Tethered written by Sherry Turkle argues that other than benefiting our lives, technology also has side effects that impair our abilities to truly be independent. She then further explains how this current generation is restricted rather than freed by the technology today. This topic is important because it discusses how we might be together in the sense of collaboration, at which almost everyone is doing it, and becoming what was once considered problematic. Also we are not entirely connected, but at the same time, we are not entirely separated, and thus the readers care because we are included in the issue, and we are affected by the issue. Today’s technology might have given us an eye opening experience, and created the opportunity for us to connect with the rest of the world in a much simpler way.…

    • 1147 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As a social media active senior at Sigourney High School, I never thought about the validity of the points made in the essay I read. Every day of the week, we, as students are glued to a form of social media at some point in the day. Social media is at our finger tips at all times, whether it is on our one-on-one computers, or checking our phones between classes. Although social media is great in many aspects, it can draw kids away or shelter them from things they should experience in life.…

    • 1036 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The essay, “Growing Up Tethered” by Sherry Turkle, seeks to address how the current generation is “tethered” or extremely connected to their cellphones and technology. Sherry Turkle is a professor in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Turkle uses evidence from testimonials and quotes provided by students’ to help the topic become understandable as well as relatable. Since Turkle provided necessary points throughout, the essay was very informative. The essay does not need much correction since Turkle made her argument convincing by using examples and explanations, making the overall concept relatable.…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Cell phones are used for many things all across the world, however they are very mind controlling and people don't realize how detrimental they can really be. Think back 20 years ago, when kids played outside until the street lights would come on and people actually took their time to engage in good conversations to form some type of human connection. We as people thrive on human connection and friendships. Sherry Turkle mentions in her article that “conversation is the most human and humanizing thing that we do”. This statement made me ponder what conversations and relationships would look like without the distraction of cellphones.…

    • 1137 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many times I have been driving down the interstate, and I find myself checking messages on my phone, and playing around with the music. Meaning every time I pick up my phone to engage in these activities, I am risking my life. After reading “Growing up tethered” written by Sherry Turkle, it really opened my eyes to just put the phone down, and go experience what life has to offer. Sherry Turkle, explains how technology is making us become more sheltered, and not being able to experience the factor of being alone in life. When you become dependent on just yourself and not someone else; that is when you will get to experience what life has to offer.…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    What is sociology? Sociology is the scientific study of social behavior and human groups. Sociology is studied and seen everywhere. In the book Alone Together by Sherry Turkle she explains how technology changes the way people interact.…

    • 609 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Disconnected Urbanism by Paul Goldberger argues cell phone usage initiates the isolation between the reality of society’s surroundings and presence by insisting that calling or texting someone diminishes the importance of culture and place. Goldberger states, “You are there, but you are not there,” which means cell phones demolish a person's potential to experience complete urbanism in a precise location, but instead transports individuals to another realm. His entire argument on phones is based on opinion and fails to deliver evidence in support of his claim. Although, technology is overused, cell phones provide means of communication and enable humans to encounter a more profound culture by allowing people on different sides of the world to have discussions with people in different hemispheres and time zones. The Pew Research Center and American Life Project orchestrated a survey in 2011 showing that 51% of cell phone users need their phone for information, which shows the impact technological devices have on society.…

    • 713 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Communication of the Future While looking around and observing people you will most likely find one thing in common; they all are on their cell phones. In this day and age, with technology growing so rapidly it is inevitable. As Ian Frazier says in Dearly Disconnected; “Even sitting in a restaurant, the person on a cell phone seems importantly busy and on the move” (376).…

    • 792 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    I agree that technology can affect the interpersonal skills developed when people spend quality time together in different scenarios. First and foremost, as demonstrated in the YouTube video The Lonely Experience: “I forgot my Smartphone” displaying the lonely effects of being in the presence of others yet alone. I myself have been in a particular situation not having my smart phone, though I was surrounded by friends, being as if I were not in the room. I was left feeling as though I were in an unfamiliar place with a group of strangers, even though were considered to be really close friends.…

    • 352 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the chapter “Growing up Tethered” from the work Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology by Sherry Turkle, she discusses how the use of cellular devices has changed the way that adolescents are raised and that their life experiences are different than prior generations. After talking to a group of teenagers, Turkle discovers that they will risk their lives to stay connected, as some of the teens admit to texting while driving. She also notes that today’s generation is always waiting for an interruption, such as a notification to pop up on their mobile devices. Turkle points out that, thanks to the use of cell phones, teenagers have immediate access to their parents. Most teenagers today call their parents several times a day, inferring…

    • 277 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    There are many conversations about how smartphones affect human interactions. In Mandy Oaklanders article “ How Your Smartphone is Ruining Your Relationship” she states that being attached to your smartphone seems to sabotage your relationship your relationship with your loved ones. If you are in a room of people, the majority have their smartphone on their body. The ring or ding of a text can pull someone out of a conversation is an instant. We are becoming a society that expects instant results and gratification.…

    • 377 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Catfish Research Paper

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In today's world technology has changed the way we live, From computers to cell phone. Today teens are on there phone at least eighty percent of the day. Ninety- two percent of teens say they go online daily, out of those ninety-two percent only twenty-four percent said they go on constantly. Do we know what they are doing? Most teens are mostly on some form of social media whether it be from Facebook to Snapchat.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Technology is a very common form of communication, but it is decreasing our children 's social skills. This is important because children are spending too much time with technology and it is beginning to show through the way they communicate with others. Some people think that it is increasing social skills, and in a way it is, but there are more negative effects than positive. There are many negative effects to our children 's social skills due to technology.…

    • 1377 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nowadays, technology develops better and better. Some people can 't even live without a mobile device for a day. Right now, people all use their phone to make the social communication, they use the phone to make a call, to text, to go to Facebook, Instagram and all the social media apps. Mobile phone become a part of peopl 's basic life. But if we don 't find a right way to use the phone, it will bring negative effect to our daily life.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays