These days even the common or garden variety landline is a pretty
outdated mode of communication. Yet who can forget the sheer awe inspired by
first spotting a ‘young urban professional’, or yuppie, wielding that novel,
hefty and horrendously pricey piece of technology – the mobile telephone.
Those seem far distant days, but much can happen in 30 years,
particularly in terms of technological progress. Although some methods of
communication seem to be a constant, their popularity does fade when outshone
by glitzy gadgets.
The Lost Art of Letter Writing
While mailing letters or sending telegrams may still be a useful
method of communication, it tends to be for the purpose of business
correspondence rather than social interaction. Again, the employment of a
messenger or carrier tends to be more typical of corporate contact, yet in this
day and age we’re talking about messengers mounted on motorbikes, not noble
steeds. Equally, pigeon-post tends to be the preserve of enthusiasts and revivalists.
Indigenous Australians used a message stick which was often carried
hundreds of kilometres by a mailman to deliver a message which could be
deciphered from the dots and angular lines etched onto its surface. It seems
the need for man to communicate has always been paramount.
This need may stem from practical matters or from the desire to interact
on a social level. Human beings are social creatures but the debate often rages
as to whether modern technology is eroding contact with our contemporaries.
In a world where distance is no longer the disruptive element it
used to be, is there really a need to communicate electronically to the extent
that we do? How many people lament receiving an email from a colleague who sits
within spitting distance? Perhaps using technology to this extent is merely a
sign of our times and reflects that we don’t place much faith in the spoken
word beyond it being an indicator of suppressed sociability?
The Symbian smartphone with its accompanying Nokia accessories enables the user
to communicate simultaneously with an array of acquaintances. Yet do you feel
side-lined when your friend interrupts your face-to-face chat to constantly
check for messages from other mates?
On many levels being able to communicate with others in real time
whatever their location is an argument for our success as social creatures. Yet
can such technology ever achieve the levels of intimacy and expression afforded
by human contact?
