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Critical Analysis: Alone Together By Sherry Turkle

931 Words4 Pages

Sherry Turkle makes the provocative statement at the onset of her novel entitled, “Alone Together”, that suggests technology to be “seductive when it what if offers meets our human vulnerabilities”. (2011:1). Technology can be perceived to have primarily been designed for problem solving purposes such as serving as a medium to improve efficiency or increase the production process, however, has since evolved into a platform that either boosts or hinders the human self-esteem. Furthermore, as suggested by Turkle, technology is not considered for the advancements offered and made, but rather for the social factors contributed in society, such as the invention of ‘emoticons’. Terms and phrases such as “selfie” or “body-shaming” serve to highlight this idea, as these terms draw more prominent links to technology and its by-product, social media, than the technical jargon. Moreover, the question asked of technology no longer reads, “what computers do for us”, rather it stands, “what do they [computers] do to us, to our ways of thinking about ourselves, our relationships [and ultimately] our sense of being”. (Turkle, 2011:2). In this essay, ideas regarding the perception and the effects of technology’s advent of social media are discussed, while using Turkle’s theories as well as additional sources as a backdrop for the arguments presented. Furthermore, these arguments serve to support the notions suggested by Turkle through two specific novels, namely Alone Together and Life on

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