The Seduction of the Internet

Developing Thesis

Well I started off with a very general topic stating that the Internet distracts us, seizing our attention, scattering it, basically messing around with us. In class we discussed it a little more and we found that apparently I’ve fallen victim to the seductive powers of the Internet. An interesting claim to say the least, I never would’ve thought about the Internet being seductive but I definitely see how it is.

When I started searching for possible resources I saw that seductiveness, allure, and addiction were terms used interchangeably to describe this ineffable power that the Internet has over us. Slowly but surely, I think I’ve started to narrow it down. I’ve come to the conclusion that the Internet is one of the most seductive forces of the modern era. I think for now that is my very generalized thesis. In asking myself, “how?” I think I can start to list my claims.

Using anecdotal evidence and making a very obvious assertion, I will argue that one of the reasons that the Internet is so alluring is that there is an overwhelming amount of possible things to research and distract oneself with.  This can further branch off into one area that I especially have trouble with: shopping. I can take myself shopping because I just don’t feel like working on my Anthropology ethnography. Sometimes I just go on my favorite clothing sites to check if the winter line has been updated or if there are any new sales or just because I really really don’t want to study. I can then go on to talk about advertising on the Internet and how it plays such a huge role on my Internet shopping-distraction-binges.

After this I can start talking about social networking sites and the control that they seem to have over us. The control that Carr speaks of in The Shallows that leads us to refresh our email pages dozens of times even though they’re programmed to notify us automatically when we receive new messages. Why do we do this? Here I can take a more psychological approach to my argument using sources I have yet to find but I’m sure exist somewhere out there…PROBABLY ON THE INTERNET.

From here I can also branch off into the topic I mentioned in the resource links I posted earlier about the lack of empathy that the Internet creates amongst people because of the absolute freedom we have to do and say what we please with no consequences. Again, I’d take a psychological approach to support my assertions.

This is all I have for now. They’re all just ideas floating around in my head. Even though I feel like I have a much better idea of where I’m heading with this project I’m still a little uneasy about it and I’d love to hear what you guys have to say about my thesis and possible supporting claims!

http://www.health.am/psy/more/what-makes-the-internet-attractive/

This link explores some insight into what things make the Internet so ‘attractive.’ There is a heavier emphasis on the ability to connect with others via chat room similar mediums. I was looking for something that might talk a little more in depth about communication through social networks but this is a more general approach to that topic. Still useful nonetheless, because in the end Facebook Chat and Twitter are like huge chatrooms and the driving forces behind our use of them are the same.

http://search.proquest.com.remote.baruch.cuny.edu/docview/750436356

This link mentioned The Shallows! I was reading through everything that I seemed to bring up in class about the Internet being seductive and alluring, even addictive. That we can’t stop ourselves from clicking from one link to another and it’s almost as if we’re crack junkies. I thought, “Yes! This is exactly what I was thinking.” It basically restates all of opinions about the Internet and like the other link I posted, brings up the topic of virtual communication. It also made an interesting point towards the end saying that the ore distracted we become, the less able we are to empathize. Some statistics followed presenting the decrease in the ability to empathize as the number of hours spent online increased. According to this article, because the Internet serves as the ultimate forum for self expression, people don’t feel the need to curtail their opinions the way that they would if they were speaking to someone else face to face. This is very possibly a topic I’d like to further develop in my essay.

I’m going to focus on the topic I talked about in my previous post about the “Net seizing our attention only to scatter it” I don’t know how specific I want to be with it yet. I might take a more scientific approach with my research to prove to what degree the Internet distracts us. I might want to take a more generalized, opinion-based approach that focuses on the experiences of people who lived in an era before the Internet took over their lives.

I’ve always been fascinated by this topic. I believe it’s true and judging by all the studies performed and mentioned in The Shallows, I know that my opinion is backed by scientific research making it more reliable and believable. Although I still don’t know exactly how I’m going to develop it, I feel that there are so many different approaches I can take to this topic that eventually I’ll find one that fits best. For now, all these possibilities make the project a little intimidating but in the end I hope I can make the right decision.

My thesis statement will probably state something along the lines of what the original quote stated with some sort of twist to it depending on the topic I choose to focus on. The general thesis will state that the Internet is a distraction but to what extent and what control we have over it I don’t know yet.

Page 118  “…the Net seizes our attention only to scatter it.”

Initially I guess you can say I fell right into Carr’s trap. I literally did everything he said I would do. I skimmed, I was distracted, checking twitter after every 10 pages I read as an incentive to keep reading. Yes, I reward myself with social networking sites, judge me. But in the midst of all of this distraction, this phrase caught my attention. I liked the way it was written, the choice of words. It was the same idea Carr had been shoving down our throats for 118 pages but I really liked it. I liked the simplicity of it.

Reading this quote in class yesterday, I felt a little differently. Suddenly the quote seemed ironic. I saw the play on words at work and our discussion in class helped to further develop that idea. From a literary perspective it became much more alluring.

I really like the irony in this quote. “The Net seizes our attention only to scatter it.” It’s like it lures us in but it doesn’t. It gives the impression that we’ll learn more but we really don’t. It makes us think we have the ability to handle multiple tasks at the same time and perform them with the same efficiency that we would if we were confronted with just one task, but we really can’t And I agree with the quote and all the things it implies, but to what extent is this true?

Nomi brought up and interesting point yesterday with the 80-20 theory. Even though we may be procrastinating for 80% of the time, we might be engaged in deep attention and reading the other 20% of the time. She said yes, we can be distracted but that’s because we have more things available to allow us to be distracted. But if she has to buckle down, and exile herself in the library for a day to get her studying done, she can do so as well.

All of this is completely true. Over my academic career I realize that it becomes harder and harder not only to start an assignment, but also to focus on it and finish it in one sitting. Procrastination, extended deadline, laziness, and sleep deprivation all contribute to distraction the Internet creates. But when I have a midterm, you better believe I’ll do anything and everything to minimize or eliminate any kind of distraction to enhance my studying experience. I turn off my phone, climb up to dresser, and hide it in a pot (true story). I turn on the Self Control program on my laptop, block all the websites that could potentially distract me, and setup the timer for 2-3 hours, depending on how productive I’m feeling. And for those 2-3 hours I’m on fire. Getting into the rhythm of studying is always difficult, I’m tempted to stare at my nails or my colorful bed and all the pictures hanging up on my wall but sooner than later I’m immersed in the subject at hand. I’m reading, learning, engaging, and understanding all the material.  Does this happen only because I’ve taken such extreme measures to isolate myself and eliminate all forms of distraction? I’m afraid it is… Unless I have printed, highlighted, tactile study guides with no need for a compute, I cannot concentrate. Perhaps my self control just sucks, (probably does) but the time it takes me to study increases exponentially. A 15 minute break turns into an hour long hiatus of nothingness. Refreshing my twitter feed every 3 tweets, and re-stalking all my friends because I miss them and have nothing better to do but relive our memories via tagged pictures on Facebook.

SO WHERE AM I GOING WITH THIS. I actually don’t really know. But I find it fascinating how distracting the Internet is. How the easier the access to the Internet becomes, our attention spans literally just spiral down the drain and leave us feeling unproductive, overwhelmed and probably a little nutty (I’m speaking for myself here but it seems as though I can generalize) I also think it’s interesting that we’re distracted by choice. Like Nomi and I stated, if we really want to, we can focus on what we want to do. Even though I have to take extreme measures to do so, I do it. so how much of this distraction is our own fault? I’m going to say a lot of it is… Just like there are infinite ways in which the Internet can distract us, there are also infinite ways to prevent it from distracting us. This is all just me trying to sort out my ideas, hopefully I can make up my mind sometime soon and choose something a little more specific to this topic. But for now, this is all I have.

Page 10

“The Internet may have made me a less patient reader, but I think that in many ways it has made me smarter… All three know they’ve sacrificed something important, but they wouldn’t go back to the way thinks used to be.”

I think we’re all inclined to want to believe this statement. That there are already so many people out there with so many negative things to say about the Internet that we just want to say something nice about it already. I must say I completely disagree with this quote. I don’t think the Internet is making us any smarter. Not only is it causing us to be less focused but it is also in turn hindering our ability to make connections to other resources. When we are online we are overwhelmed with hundreds of different little bits of information. In those brief moments that we are concentrated on one task, we might be able to make all those connections but what happens when we shift our attention elsewhere? Would we still be able to make those connections half an hour later? A week later? Years later? How focused were we to begin with? Does any ‘deep reading’ take place when we’re surfing the web? Muses Davis makes an optimistic statement. A bold one too. But I think the reality is a little different.

Page 65

“Reading a book was a meditative act, but it didn’t involve a clearing of the mind. It involved a filling, or replenishing, of the mind.”

This is such an interesting way to think of reading. A lot of us can agree that meditation is some sort of relaxing experience, one in which we let go of our worries. For some of us, reading serves as a meditative medium. In the process however, we’re learning and absorbing new information. It’s almost as if work is relaxing (?). Reading and concentration requires some degree of work, in some cases more than others but regardless of the degree of work we’re doing something, right? It makes me think of reading books that I love. Those moments in which I’m completely enveloped in the story and the characters are all real to me. Not only am I both enjoying the act of reading and paying close attention but I am also learning and making connections to the real world. Sometimes this happens when I’m studying too. Those moments when I’m so concentrated on the subject at hand that I feel myself absorbing every little bit of information I’m reading and oddly enough, there’s something relaxing about it. It’s one of those things what we know but never actually verbalize and that’s why this sentence made me think a little longer than the others did.

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