I dreamed a dream...
where new technologies make us come together with no geographic boundaries.
where new technologies help new generations learn with no limits.
where new technologies make freedom of expression feasible through social communities.
where new technologies encourage our minds to be actively creative.
where new technologies improve our job/school efficiency leaving room for us to enjoy our free time.
where new technologies don't turn a family reunion into a cold moment where everyone is checking their technological devices.
where new technologies don't make us believe that emojis worth so much more than saying I LOVE YOU or hugging someone you truly love.
where new technologies don't enslave us and alienate our concept of what real relationships are.
...
I dreamed a dream...
I love this short poem. It concerns both sides of new technologies. And the title here makes the poem even more meaningful that it is exactly a dream which beautifies negative effects that technologies seem to have already brought about. For me, I am a little pessimistic about the realization of this dream. Technology does not have essence, which means whether it will lead to a bright future depends on how the mankind takes advantage of it. If the hierarchy of the society stays the same, problems of equity, free speech and etc. will still exist regardless of how thrilling new technologies are.
ReplyDeletehi christian thank you for your beautiful freestyle verse (I was a literature student so it naturally caught my attention :p). I appreciate the combination of the literary format and the content related to our course. I notice that you have mentioned both your hopes and concerns of new technology and Id love to add some thoughts on the concept of "alienation" as in the ninth line. If we put it as "alienate our concept of what real relationship are", we are making evaluations based on the concept of traditional "real relationships" which you praised. Do you think it would be possible that someday new technologies became so pervasive as to have redefined the meaning of relationship and this new kind of relationship became social norms?
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