Nicholas Carr’s essay, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?”, argues something legitimate - the dumbing down of people as a result of overwhelming technology. Throughout this piece, Carr focuses on the influential power of technology in changing the way the mind works, referencing examples that span from the writings of Plato to anecdotes about his own experiences in using the Internet. Though Carr presents a solid argument, he fails to persuade due to two main issues: his assumptively negative perspective on technology’s effects and his lack of convincing, concrete evidence. Ultimately, Carr incorrectly thinks that Google, or technology in general, makes us “stupid;” rather, it allows for people to view information in a more efficient manner.
A major issue with Carr’s argument centers around the validation of his own beliefs with …show more content…
Carr takes the idea that media “[shapes] the process of thought,” relating it to how the “Net [chips] away [his] capacity for concentration and contemplation.” This jump in association simply makes no sense. McLuhan’s theory presents itself as an inherently neutral one - this shaping construes just mere perspective, it takes no moral ground. However, Carr uses this to verify how the internet negatively affects his own anecdotal capacity for focusing; he incorrectly appropriates a neutral theory, changing it into something that directly supports his own argument and indirectly condemns technology’s effects. Carr attempts to support his own experience through the shared sentiment of others, specifically bloggers Scott Karp and Bruce Friedman, regarding how technology distracts. However, these anecdotes all ride on the assumption that media’s functions, as defined by McLuhan, are inherently
A major issue with Carr’s argument centers around the validation of his own beliefs with …show more content…
Carr takes the idea that media “[shapes] the process of thought,” relating it to how the “Net [chips] away [his] capacity for concentration and contemplation.” This jump in association simply makes no sense. McLuhan’s theory presents itself as an inherently neutral one - this shaping construes just mere perspective, it takes no moral ground. However, Carr uses this to verify how the internet negatively affects his own anecdotal capacity for focusing; he incorrectly appropriates a neutral theory, changing it into something that directly supports his own argument and indirectly condemns technology’s effects. Carr attempts to support his own experience through the shared sentiment of others, specifically bloggers Scott Karp and Bruce Friedman, regarding how technology distracts. However, these anecdotes all ride on the assumption that media’s functions, as defined by McLuhan, are inherently