1、Unit 3Alienation and the InternetWill BakerPart IWarming up Group Discussion:1.Please describe whats happening in the following pictures,and your understandings concerning with the topic of the Internet and Communication.2.Do we benefit from the Internet or fall victim to it?The Internet is a wonder
2、ful source from which we can retrieve valuable information.Moreover,it facilitates our communication with people far away from us at a cost substantially less than that of traditional means of communication.Also,it can be an important building block to childrens learning because a vast amount of inf
3、ormation is only clicks away.There is evidence suggesting that computer use is linked to slightly better academic performance.Cultural information 1Pros and Cons of the InternetCultural information 2 However,there is sufficient evidence indicating that the Internet can exert a harmful influence on p
4、eople.For example,its addictive power has increased children andyoungsters time spent in front of the computer screens at the expense of other healthier physical activities,thus increasing their chance of getting overweight and short-sighted.In addition,children have limited ability of telling right
5、 from wrong and therefore are subject to the potential contaminating influence of the harmful materials on the Internet.Part IIGeneral ReadingGlobal Reading-Main idea 1Text analysis If the Internet allows for the free exchange of ideas,it helps to unify us.Then how does it alienate us while uniting
6、us?How does it fragment society while globalizing ideas?This is the issue that the author tackles in the text.Text analysisAltering the society for the better Providing an forum Enabling free exchange of ideas Helping the globalization of ideas Realizing human potential Furthering the fragmentation
7、of society Alienating individual users Leading to unintended negative consequencesAltering the society for the worseInternetText analysisRealizing global unificationFragmenting the societyEnabling free exchange of ideasAlienating individual usersStructural analysis 1Rhetorical features The seeming s
8、elf-contradiction that the Internet can lead to globalization on the one hand and cause the alienation of the users from the people around them on the other is reinforced by the use of pairs of antonyms.Example:unification/alienation;Practice:more examples of antonyms in the text:lInternet binges/lo
9、nely depressed;lbecoming distanced from their extended families/develop on-line relationships with folks on the other side of the globe;loutside playing with his friends/play his games against his friends in the cyberspace;lreality/virtual existence;lnot real/trueStructuralAnalysisopeningbody conclu
10、sionpresents his thesissupports his point with evidences and reasonsreiterates main ideaPart I(Paras.12)IntroductionThe author states his thesis.Part II(Paras.36)Body partThe author supports his point with evidences and reasons.Part III(Para.7)ConclusionThe author reiterates his point.Global Reading
11、-Main idea 1The thesis statement of the text is in the second paragraph:The concluding statement appears at the beginning of the last paragraph:“.the Internet may be responsible for furthering the fragmentation of society by alienating its individual users.”“All this being said,I believe that the ke
12、y to realizing the potential of the Internet is in achieving balance in our lives.”Part IIIDetailed Reading The Internet provides an amazing forum for the free exchange of ideas.Given the relatively few restrictions governing access and usage,it is the communications modal equivalent of internationa
13、l waters.It is my personal belief that the human potential can only be realized by the globalization of ideas.I developed this position years before the Internet came into widespread use.And I am excited at the potential for the Internet to dramatically alter our global society for the better.Howeve
14、r I am also troubled by the possible unintended negative consequences.Will BakerALIENATION AND THE INTERNETDetailed reading11Detailed reading2 There has been much talk about the“new information age.”But much less widely reported has been the notion that the Internet may be responsible for furthering
15、 the fragmentation of society by alienating its individual users.At first this might sound like an apparent contradiction:how can something,that is on the one hand responsible for global unification by enabling the free exchange of ideas,alienate the participants?I had a recent discussion with a fri
16、end of mine who has what he described as a“problem”with the Internet.When I questioned further he said that he was“addicted,”23Detailed reading3and has“forced”himself to go off-line.He said that he felt like an alcoholic,in that moderate use of the Internet was just not possible for him.I have not k
17、nown this fellow to be given to exaggeration,therefore when he described his Internet binges,when he would spend over twenty-four hours on line non-stop,it gave me pause to think.He said,“the Internet isnt real,but I was spending all my time on line,so I just had to stop.”He went on to say that all
18、of the time that he spent on line might have skewed his sense of reality,and that it made him feel lonely and depressed.Detailed reading4 4 The fragmentation of society has been lamented for some time now.It seems to me that it probably began in earnest after World War II when a generation returned
19、from doing great deeds overseas.They won the war,and by God they were going to win the peace.Automobile ownership became commonplace and suburbs were created.“Progress”was their mantra.So even prior to the Internets widespread popularity,folks were already becoming distanced from their extended fami
20、lies and neighbors.And when we fast-forward to today we see an almost cruel irony in that people can and often do develop on-line relationships with folks on the other side of the globe,without leaving their homes.Detailed reading5But at the expense of the time that would have otherwise been availab
21、le for involvement in other activities which might foster a sense of community in their villages,towns and cities.Last weekend my wife and I invited our extended family to our home to celebrate our daughters birthday.During the celebration my young nephew spent the entire time on my computer playing
22、 a simulated war game.My brother-in-law and I were chatting nearby and it struck us that in generations past,his son,my nephew,would have been outside playing with his friends.But now the little fellow goes on line to play his games against his friends in cyberspace.5Detailed reading6 It seems to me
23、 that the Internet is a powerful tool that presents an opportunity for the advancement of the acquisition and application of knowledge.However,based on my personal experience I can understand how,as they surf the web some folks might be confronted with cognitive overload.And I can also understand ho
24、w one might have his or her sense of reality distorted in the process.Is the Internet a real place?Depending upon how a“real place”is defined it might very well be.At the very least,I believe that when we use the Internet,6Detailed reading7we are forced to ask fundamental questions about how we perc
25、eive the world about us perhaps another unintended consequence.Some would argue that the virtual existences created by some users who debate,shop,travel and have romance on line are in fact not real,while others would argue that,since in practical terms,folks are debating,shopping,traveling and havi
26、ng romance,the converse is true.Detailed reading8 7 All of this being said,I believe that the key to realizing the potential of the Internet is in achieving balance in our lives.This would allow us to maximize its potential without losing our sense of place.However,like most things,that is easier sa
27、id than done.It seems to me that we are a society that values immediate gratification above all else,and what better place to achieve it than in cyberspace,where the cyber-world is your cyber-oyster.The widespread use of the automobile forever changed our society and culture,and perhaps a similar so
28、rt of thing is occurring now.I am notDetailed reading9at all certain where the“information superhighway”will lead us:some say to Utopia,while others feel its the road to hell.But I do know that we all have the ability to maintain our sense of place in the world.Whether we choose to take advantage of
29、 this ability is another matter.Question,Para1:According to the author,what are the strong points of the Internet?And what does he see about its negative side?Detailed reading1-Quesion 1As a marvelous forum for the free exchange of ideas,the Internet can help realize the human potential by globalizi
30、ng ideas and ultimately promoting social progress.Yes,the author also sees the negative consequences thee Internet may bring about.This is what he argues in this essay:the Internet may be responsible for furthering the fragmentation of society by alienating its individual users.Question,Para1:How do
31、es the author start his argument?Detailed reading1-Quesion 1The author starts his argument by presenting an apparent contradiction:on the one hand,the Internet facilitates global unification by enabling the free exchange of ideas;on the other,it alienates the participants.Detailed reading1-Quesion 2
32、Question,Para 3:What is the authors purpose of citing the example of his friend?How is the example related to his argument?With the example of his friend,the author intends to convince the reader of the negative consequence of the Internet.His friend was addicted to the Internet and stayed on line t
33、oo long.The side effect of the Internet upon his friend,i.e.distorting his sense of reality and making him feel lonely and depressed,is evidence that the Internet contributes to the fragmentation of society by alienating its individual users.Detailed reading1-Quesion 3Question,Para4:What is the“cruel irony”concerning the use of the Internet mentioned at the end of Paragraph 4?The“cruel irony”means
