Wallis And Turkle: Article Analysis

Technology, where would people be without you? They would not be instant messaging the one they met at Casablanca three years ago or trawling through a photo album of their elementary school classmates. They would not be able to use emoji instead of words to craft a sentence. However, where would people be with technology? They would be no longer require bars, cafes, or clubs to keep in touch with others because they could do it anywhere and anytime by using portable devices. They would be no long need to talk with their colleagues at work because they can communicate with each one via emails from a few feet away. This raises the questions: when an individual connects to the devices, is he/she disconnecting from people around him/her? Is he/she …show more content…
Turkle employs problem-solving structure to illustrate how technology negatively influences face-to-face communication. She introduces the problem that people have sacrificed face-to-face conversation for connection because they communicate with each other by devices (Turkle 334). She further develops the problem by depicting an example of a 16-year-old boy relying on texting and failing to find a way to communicate with others in his life (Turkle 335). Then, Turkle proposes solutions, such as creating “device-free zones” in the car, making “sacred spaces” at home, introducing “conversational Thursdays” at the workplace to give everyone a chance to listen to each other (337). Hence, Turkle uses problem and solution structure to defend her argument, which is that technology makes an individual disconnect from people around …show more content…
For example, she uses metaphors to reiterate her argument that people are currently relying too much on technology rather than on humans for companionship. Turkle highlights that the “little ‘sips’ of online connection add up to a big gulp of real conversation” (335). She also states that people are getting used to a new way of being “alone together” to show how people have become accustomed to relying on technology (Turkle 334). These literary devices engage the audiences’ emotions and imagination, showing that technology cannot be used for maintaining a human relationship. On the contrary, Wallis uses emotional and straightforward language to appeal to the audience’s imagination. For example, she uses words, such as “together”, “bond”, “sharing”, “side-by-side”, “eye-to-eye”, and “connection” (389). By applying straightforward language, Wallis presents her argument in a clear way, allowing the audience to understand her position