Blog 10: "The Evolution of Communication: Past vs Present" (One Side at a Time)

{One Side at a Time}

Topic Sentence: If we humans did achieve bipedalism through evolution, so did the way we communicate.

I. Communication Before

1. Time it takes for the message to arrive at its destination. (longer)
2. Meeting new people (not that prevalent)
3. How people forge relationships (Face-to-Face)
4. Courting ("challenging" task)
5. The "old" generation's point of view (Past is better than present)

II. Communication Now

1. Time it takes for the message to arrive at its destination. (shorter)
2. Meeting new people (prevalent)
3. How people forge relationships (with the help of technology)
4. Courting (less challenging)
5. The "new" generation's point of view (Present is better than past)

If we humans did achieve bipedalism through evolution, so did the way we communicate. Before the advent of technology, people would wait weeks, months, even years for their message to reach its destination. Of course, they didn't have the luxury of cellphones back then. They rely on letters and telegrams if they want their message to reach the other side. Meeting new people was also an obstacle. In most cases, people only make friends by direct contact with others. It explains why communities of old were much closer and almost all of them knew each other. People of yesterday forge relationships "face-to-face". If they want to apologize, say thanks, or just say hi, they do it by personal contact. Also, courting was considered challenging back then. The man would visit the woman's house to do his courting there. It could be through "harana" or just go there to meet the parents. These are some factors which led to some "old-timers" saying that the past is better than the present. They claim that the meaning of communication has degraded because of the advancements in technology and the younger generation losing values. On the other hand, the present generation is way different in the way they communicate. It would only take a click to get their message through the other side. It is also easier for the people today to meet strangers. All they do is to have a facebook account or other online social networks and they can start "making friends". With the help of technology, forging relationships is much easier. It is all thanks to the cellphone that people could communicate conveniently at long distances. In contrast to communication back then, courting isn't even that much of a challenge anymore. Today, a person can court someone through SMS or with a little help from the email. They even depend on text templates in "strengthening their relationship". In the young generation's defense, they claim that the rise of technology benefited them in their day to day living. It gave them the convenience and even claimed that the meaning isn't lost when using these gadgets. Which is better you may ask? It really depends on the person in my opinion. It is because as time progresses, so does communication. If you ask me, times are changing and we should just live with it.

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