Sigmund Freud discusses his opinion about the impact of technology on modern society in Civilization and Its Discontents. Freud states in the opening sentence that humans have made prominent advances in the sciences as well as technical application and this has increased control over nature tremendously. He goes on to say that these advancements may not be all optimistic. In fact, Freud believes technology leads to a sort of “cheap pleasure.” An example of cheap pleasure he offers is, “what is the good of reduction of infant mortality if it forces us to practice extreme restraint in the procreation of children.” He says by promoting this reduction, we are actually “imposing restraints on sexual life within marriage and worked against the benefits of natural selection.” Another example Freud offers is the prolonging of life. To him, this is seen as a “cheap pleasure” as well because what good is extending life if the person living is old, suffering, and joyless? Sigmund Freud and his contemporaries were overall pessimists about technological advancements due to what they experienced in WWI. The improved technology in warfare created during WWI lead to an outrageous amount of casualties compared to previous wars.
Personally, I agree but also disagree with Freud and his contemporaries on the argument involving technology. In my day and age, technology has taken over the world. Every task or activity one goes about involves some sort of technology. An example today of technology advancement is the transition of writing emails to sending texts. In the positive light, texting is much more convenient and consumes less time compared to emailing. However, by doing the simple task of texting, humans lose the personal connection of formal email interaction as well as face to face interaction with one another. The happiness humans get from saving time by texting is what I see as a positive aspect of technological advancement. The suffering of losing personal connection with each other is what creates a negative aspect of technological advancement.
The protagonist, Hank Morgan, in Mark Twain’s, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, favors technological advancements. Hank is described as a manager of a munitions factory in Connecticut. His goal is to remake England with the American model and correct all of the country’s injustices. Hank has diverse ideas of technological advancements including building factories, schools and railroads. He believes with these advancements he will be able to end slavery, raise men, and carry out truth and justice throughout the nation. Hank seems to be a supporter of technological advancements as of now. He believes they will make a positive difference in the world.