Disconnection In Modern Life

One often hears stories or reminiscences of 'the good old days' and this no doubt has an element of inflated and exaggerated sentiment to it, yet in some respects it is apparent that aspects of modern living compare unfavourably with those of the not too distant past. While mobility and opportunity whether it be economic, social, geographical or cultural has expanded exponentially in the more 'developed' nations of the world, some of the benefits of a more patient, humble and connected time have been lost, particularly in terms of connection between persons in their day to day lives. By connection I'm referring chiefly to those bonds of acquaintance, friendship, and community formerly experienced by most people in society. While in the past these connections came freely and easily in the more communal settings of village or small town living, today's experience of modern living is decidedly different.

In the pre-modern, pre-urban, rural condition of living, people had low geographic mobility. They would be born, live and die in the same village without having travelled much at all. That would perhaps be considered today to be somewhat of a disadvantage. However, the denizens of small towns and villages also possessed the advantage of a greater familiarity (though it may be considered a disadvantage to those of a particularly private or reclusive nature) and connection with their families and neighbours, all the while enjoying greater living space with lower population densities. I know this probably sounds a little idealised, like a scene from a Jimmy Stewart movie but some of it was and is true. The stories about people knowing everybody and leaving their doors unlocked at night were true. The rates of crime (particularly property crime) were far lower in the 1st half of the 20th century in the United States and Britain.

In contrast the experience of modern life in the city is radically different. The modern urbanite is likely to live in a shoe box, crammed into districts with population densities far higher than those in rural and pre-modern society. This experience will also include such negative externalities (as the economists would put it) as crime, pollution, queues and the general rudeness of stressed out people. The modern person is also likely to come across hundreds of people in the course of an ordinary day (as opposed to the few in the pre-modern/rural person) yet his or her connection to each person is likely to be negligible or non existent (which may be a good thing for misanthropists). Ironically it may be that the modern person has fewer (in absolute and not just relative terms) connections, friendships and acquaintances than his or her pre-modern or rural counterpart.

Our economic, social, geographic and culutral mobility is far higher, and that's great. Yet often this mobility means we will lose our connections to friends and family as we all pursue our different paths in life. How often have even close relations, brothers, sisters, parents and children drifted apart not through any break down of affinity but just through the effect of geographical and social distance?

Modern living as we all know, also places greater pressures on time. Ironically even with all our improvements in labour saving devices and technology, it seems that we have even less time to meet with friends, family or even say hello to a neighbour or the doorman. Instead we are in constant state of 'on demand' through the technology that was supposed to save time and make life more convenient.

What does the future offer in modern living? It seems more of the same. An ever faster pace of life, 24-7 news, communications and commerce hand in hand with the increasing atomisation of society into a mere aggregration of isolated and self-interested individuals subject to and creating the will of the market which of course is the will of society ... or at least that's what we're supposed to believe.