John leverso
Blog 8
Modern Technology
Work today in the postmodern society is very different from the work our grandparents did in the modernsociety. Our grandparents worked with their hands on factory floors; they worked directly with the products they were producing. An example of this
is the Ford Model T plant. People in the modern society worked directly on the cars they were producing. In a postmodern society work is now mediated by the computer, meaning we do our work on a computer than the computer works on the factory floors, e.g. engineer’s program computer and computers put the cars together. In this blog I
argue that this postmodern reliance on computers and technology transforms
reality into a serious of images and this technological transformation creates
ambivalence in how we view computers.
Postmodern technology transforms our reality into a serious of images,
meaning our reality is not in the embodied know how of making a car, but in the
intellectual skill of programing a computer to make a car for us. In all facets of life the computer now mediates how we do things, hence we see reality as a serious of images as postmodern theorist like Featherstone claim. The computer mediates
everything. For example this week alone I bought a book for next semester on line, I paid my bills on line, and I even ordered food online. My reality is now images rather than face to face experiences.
I argue that this reliance on computers has created an ambivalent
attitude towards computers. Ambivalence as defined by postmodern theorists is the experience of conflicting emotions. Modern society now has an ambivalent relationship with the computer that turns our experiences into a serious of images.
Everyone wants computer facilitation to make their lives easier, but we
recognize that our reliance on computers has had an adverse effect on our
ability to be employed. Work formally done by people has now been built into computers.
In the ford plant where cars are built the factory floor is no longer busting with people and
activities, computers now do the work that people used to do.
This has serious societal implications since computers now take the jobs
of people. This is one of the causes of the rise in unemployment.
I would argue that this is the foundation of our ambivalent relationship
with computers. Everyone wants the easiest, the best, up-to-date computer that can perform many functions for us, but at the same time we recognize that these same computers are taking jobs or down grading the level of skill needed to do a job.
If a computer is doing all the work companies no longer have to hire and
pay experts. Computers create both anxiety about the job market and extreme pleasure about their convenience factor; hence, we have an ambivalent relationship with
computers.
Computers and technology are a double edged sword. On one hand they make our lives so much easier; I can do just about any social function on the computer, but on the other hand they have an adverse effect on the people living in our society. Convenience is not worth people not having jobs and not being able to support their families. Yes, I like the easy way, but not at the cost of higher unemployment
rates. That is a perfect example
of my ambivalent relationship computers.
I argue that postmodern theorists are right we do live in an ambivalent
society.
Blog 8
Modern Technology
Work today in the postmodern society is very different from the work our grandparents did in the modernsociety. Our grandparents worked with their hands on factory floors; they worked directly with the products they were producing. An example of this
is the Ford Model T plant. People in the modern society worked directly on the cars they were producing. In a postmodern society work is now mediated by the computer, meaning we do our work on a computer than the computer works on the factory floors, e.g. engineer’s program computer and computers put the cars together. In this blog I
argue that this postmodern reliance on computers and technology transforms
reality into a serious of images and this technological transformation creates
ambivalence in how we view computers.
Postmodern technology transforms our reality into a serious of images,
meaning our reality is not in the embodied know how of making a car, but in the
intellectual skill of programing a computer to make a car for us. In all facets of life the computer now mediates how we do things, hence we see reality as a serious of images as postmodern theorist like Featherstone claim. The computer mediates
everything. For example this week alone I bought a book for next semester on line, I paid my bills on line, and I even ordered food online. My reality is now images rather than face to face experiences.
I argue that this reliance on computers has created an ambivalent
attitude towards computers. Ambivalence as defined by postmodern theorists is the experience of conflicting emotions. Modern society now has an ambivalent relationship with the computer that turns our experiences into a serious of images.
Everyone wants computer facilitation to make their lives easier, but we
recognize that our reliance on computers has had an adverse effect on our
ability to be employed. Work formally done by people has now been built into computers.
In the ford plant where cars are built the factory floor is no longer busting with people and
activities, computers now do the work that people used to do.
This has serious societal implications since computers now take the jobs
of people. This is one of the causes of the rise in unemployment.
I would argue that this is the foundation of our ambivalent relationship
with computers. Everyone wants the easiest, the best, up-to-date computer that can perform many functions for us, but at the same time we recognize that these same computers are taking jobs or down grading the level of skill needed to do a job.
If a computer is doing all the work companies no longer have to hire and
pay experts. Computers create both anxiety about the job market and extreme pleasure about their convenience factor; hence, we have an ambivalent relationship with
computers.
Computers and technology are a double edged sword. On one hand they make our lives so much easier; I can do just about any social function on the computer, but on the other hand they have an adverse effect on the people living in our society. Convenience is not worth people not having jobs and not being able to support their families. Yes, I like the easy way, but not at the cost of higher unemployment
rates. That is a perfect example
of my ambivalent relationship computers.
I argue that postmodern theorists are right we do live in an ambivalent
society.