After reading Amusing Ourselves to Death, I have now come to realize why Ms. Fletcher said that this book needs patience and actual time to be fully indulged into Postman’s world. At first I was slow to become interested in this book, as the early chapters go in depth with a lot of historical facts and scenarios that I was unfamiliar with, but as I continued on through the book, it eventually became interesting. I realized how relevant it is today for internet media as it was for television 30 years ago. Neil Postman is a very clever writer with great insights on the American culture. It is one of the most important writings about how media affects society. Postman presents how clearly the transition from a reading-based society to one in which television is the primary medium through which the public obtains information. It is frightening how a book written 30 years ago could be so accurate about the evolution of America.
Whether we like to admit it or not, technology has made its way into our lives and we will never be the same again. Every human being sees this phrase with eyes of either positivity or negativity. Amusing Ourselves to Death addresses the progression of typography to television and how these mediums have influenced our media, politics, and news intake. Neil Postman’s 1985 perspective on the reshaping of our culture is insightful, bold, and brutally honest. He identifies that we as a culture thrive off of the desire to be entertained. For those of you who have read the book, what are your views on it? Was it an easy read for you? Do you agree or disagree with Postman? How relevant do you think Amusing Ourselves to Death is today?
Postman's book was definitely not an easy read. I would have to read certain pages twice to try and understand what points he was trying to make in the book. Although Postman's main ideas where relevant like 15 years ago. Like others said when we say television most of us are talking about Netflix or YouTube people don't sit and watch the news all day. It is not as relevant as it was when it was written because of things like Netflix TV broadcasts are not the main focus of peoples lives anymore.
ReplyDeleteI found myself being amazed by how much of what Postman was saying turned out to be true. It made me think of how predictable the outcome must have been around the time of the transition into television and what negative thoughts some might have had. We rely too much on technology nowadays, and that can sometimes be a bad thing. As long as we aren't being controlled by what we make, good things can come out of it.
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