Reflections of Havergal: 1994-2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Why Do I Hate Technology? An Exploration of the Ageist Mind BTI , December 2014 By Julia Mastroianni

The first time you hear it, it paralyzes you. You are confused. You are unknowingly defensive. “Teenagers and their phones.” It’s a barely-audible grumble, a preaching reminder, a bitter observation, made a million times in a million different places to a million different people, but for you, this is the first. The next time you hear it, you’re on the subway, in the car, at your grandmother’s house; a million times in a million different places to a million different people who now include you. Eventually you take it upon yourself to wonder why and do some research, some social research. You observe the kinds of people who make the comments. You watch how many times your younger sister experiences the same thing. You notice where you get called out. You pay close attention. In the end, you can only come to one general conclusion: it’s definitely a teenage issue, and it’s definitely an aversion to technology issue. You’ve never really liked technology. That is to say, you recognize how useful it is but you have never managed to properly understand how to use it, so instead you simply admire those who can navigate the Internet with grace and ease. You deal the only the bare minimum technological intricacies of your devices. You endure the constant bashing of technology through those varying comments, you start to get defensive. You start a little mantra in your head of all the good qualities of technology. To your delight, there are many. The next time you hear it, phrased in the form of, “Back in my day... [insert irrelevant and unrelated- to-today’s-society comment here], you speak up on behalf of technology. You list those good qualities from your mantra, and when you finish, you smile. However, when you look up at your verbal sparring partner, there is a knowing, close-minded look. You will not be heard. You both go on your separate ways. The next time you hear it, you’re better prepared. You have arguments this time, and you state them confidently. You talk about technology’s importance to access to knowledge and

information. You explain that, though confusing at times, the rapid development of technology is really a wonderful and valuable part of the evolution of society, similar to evolutions in fashion. You make connections to things that have been improved by technology aside from technology itself. It’s a solid case--but to no avail. You receive the same knowing look, the same smirk, and you nod, this time without a hint of a smile in it. You give up for a while. Then, you read an article published by TIME magazine, highlighting some words that should be “banned” for 2015, and you notice they’re all words used most often by the female teenage population (e.g. literally, turnt, bae). It reminds you of the first time someone commented on your usage of your phone, and it all comes rushing back to you-your mantra, the planned arguments, the knowing look. You realize that your general conclusion from your social research was wrong-it isn’t an issue about teenagers, it’s an issue about ageism. The next time, you don’t wait for another comment. You bring up the topic, and your arguments aren’t shining reviews of technology anymore, but rather specific examples of how the wariness of technology is directly correlated with society’s opinion of teenagers. You explain that adults have trouble with the idea of their kids’ fixations with their devices because they’re not used to it. Not because it’s an actual issue, as some would wish you to believe, but because it’s different and strange from what they know. You illustrate how the disdain for anything teenagers enjoy or partake in is the direct root of this fear of technology. You used to hate being a teenager, but you realize in the middle of your passionate speech that this had nothing to do with hating actual teenagers and everything to do with hating how teenagers are portrayed. You realize you’ve transferred from defending technology to defending teenagers. You wonder if it’s the same thing.

BACK TO PAGE 115

REFLECTIONS OF HAVERGAL  213