B21: Lonely and Too Connected


In Charles Seife’s The Loneliness of the Interconnected, Seife effectively informs readers about the internet and human behavior through the discussion of different case studies. Seife is effective at reaching people because of the disturbing yet interesting information he shares. He writes in a way that is kind of like a story with varied sentence structure, which helps keep the reader entertained and on edge. I primarily noticed the impact he had using short, simple sentences such as “Even against your will,” “Then came the internet,” “Bit by bit, it is driving us toward extremism,” etc. (Seife). The angle on this is a little unclear because the views are extreme and futuristic, but it is hitting on the negative side of being so interconnected and focused on technology and the internet. With fake news and the ability to spread ideas easily on the internet, people can receive validation for their ludicrous beliefs. The “so what” is that internet users need to be wary about what is posted online because untrue information can be deadly and cause people to live in fear. Seife encourages us to challenge ourselves by educating ourselves on each side of an issue and not only pay attention to the information that supports our beliefs. He is trying to encourage us to connect to people with beliefs that are not like our own as we all gravitate towards those that are like us and will validate, support, and agree with us. I thought that this essay was engaging both times I read it because I am interested in how technology impacts us, and he had a lot of varied and extreme examples relating to outrageous beliefs I didn’t know had strong followings or real-life impacts.

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