Technology versus Tradition - Essay Example

Saxon (2003) argues that we live in a society in which technology has taken over almost every aspect of life. The world has experienced rapid technological advancements over the past couple of decades. Technological advancements have improved the quality of life more than ever before. According to Kaplan (1995), technology has eased the way we do things. Nevertheless, many people, especially the elderly are still nostalgic for the ‘good old days.’ This is because they believe that the world was better off than it was before the emergence of many modern technologies. Such differences prompted Postman to claim that, in technocratic societies, technology, and tradition co-exist in an easy tension (Postman, 1992).

It is debatable whether Postman’s claims are true or not. In my view, the claim by Postman regarding the uneasy tension that exists between technology and tradition is true to a great extent. This is because we can now observe the culture shift pointed out by Postman in societies that have been isolated and are slowly integrating technology. For example, despite the negative traditional view of technology, the Inupiat Eskimos living in Little Diomede Island, who are currently accessing satellite television an example of how technology is in uneasy tension with tradition. Additionally, the younger villages of the Eskimos are increasingly forsaking traditional clothing in favor of sweatshirts, according to Kaplan (1995). Postman (1992) noted that, for people throughout the world, the challenge has been to accept and benefit from what technology brings while clinging to the wisdom and values of their own culture. That is, walking between the world of technology and tradition.

The claim by Postman is also true because technology has had destructive effects on tradition and rituals thereby creating tension between the two. As W.I. Thompson pointed out, America is an electronic Umwelt, where history is documented in the form of movies, and education is shown with entertainment while nature is matched with technology (Kaplan, 1995). According to Thompson, singing ceased in pubs following the emergence of technology, notes Kaplan (1995). Postman also supports his claim regarding the uneasy tension between technology and tradition by recounting how culture has been at loggerheads with technology. He points out that culture has surrendered to technology largely. Postman (1992) highlights in detail how advancement in medical technology has rendered the doctor as a subordinate to this technology with little control. Postman believes that such technological advancements have made medicine about the disease rather than the patient. Traditionally, people used to rely on herbal medicines something, which resulted in many deaths due to the ineffectiveness of medicines for some diseases. However, due to technological advancement, such traditional medicines are slowly disappearing despite efforts made by the elderly in society, observed Saxon (2003). This proves the claim by Postman that tradition and technology are co-existing in uneasy tension.
Postman is also right in his claim since we observe that as people increasingly rely on technology many people lose their capacity to do things that used to be done in the past. For example, in the past, people used to rely mainly on physical strength to do things. However, with the emergence of technology, people have become exceedingly lazy - to the extent that they want everything to be done using technology, as observed by Kaplan (1995). This has resulted in low productivity as far as individual effort is concerned, according to tradition, thereby creating uneasy tension.

The uneasy tension between technology and tradition has emanated from the fact that technology has rendered many traditional beliefs and ways of doing things irrelevant (Trusty, 2006). Nevertheless, not all traditions are in conflict with technology. It is notable that, before technology spread in the world, people tended to rely on traditional ways of doing things. For instance, people of the olden days used to communicate verbally as things like mobile phones did not exist. However, with the emergence of technology, mobile phones were invented, which have made communication easy, according to Trusty (2006). What is evident is that it has never been documented resistance to the introduction of mobile phones in traditional societies. This is because mobile phones have eased communication with everyone regardless of traditional beliefs. Read More