Week 11

I want to admit I am on what I feel is very neutral ground in regards to The Medium is the Massage. I didn’t look further into McLuhan’s work, though I read through the suggested material. There were many points on which I did make a connection and others I feel that by now are out dated. In my opinion it is difficult to assign a singular definition to media over a wide range of generations. As generations change, so do their interpretations of words and other content. By connotation, someone 50 years my age might not think the same thing of “community” or “socialization”. Of course, there will be those who insist on a singular explanation and perhaps they have every right to.

On the day of discussion what struck me as most interesting was an observation on the inflation of media and reaction. Time feels to go faster only because we have many more reference points to note. By contrast of the past, with a higher population on Earth there will logically be more content created at higher, quicker rates. It creates a lot of  “noise”, which in relation to the book was another thought I found intriguing. Again, with the amount of people and new kinds of media being produced in this age the newer generations have no particular expectation of content, but rather content will exist, no matter its form.

It is obvious to me that what we are surrounded by will affect our views and actions. A quieter world will produce more stable, or still opinions, while a constantly moving world must be open to adaptation. In the end I believe I see McLuhan’s points, though I neither support, nor reject their reasons in full.