November 22, 2015 - 22:14
Generally, I appreciated Bowers' article- the content was informative and progressive. However, one point stood out to me with which I did not agree. Bowers talks about how technologies induce lack of understanding of interdependency in the environment. He then transitions to say that "Phrases 'I think', 'I want,' and 'what do you think?' continually reinforce the myth of not being part of the independent and cutural natural ecosystems, but rather being a separate observer, thinker, and actor" (46). I agree that humans, throughout history, have distanced themselves from their surroundings, yet, such phrases are not always evil. If one is expressing his or her individual thoughts with good intention, is he or she contributing to this myth? No. What if individuals share beneficial ideas/thoughts about helping the environment, yet these ideas are independent of others' thoughts? Are these thoughts wrong? No. The phrases 'I think', 'I want', and 'what do you think?' do not always act to separate the thinker from his or her surroundings. People can have these thoughts in an effort to join with others for potentially good causes.
It would be interesting to disect Bowers' arguments in class and think about his claim. Are Bowers' points too one-sided?