The Online Connection in the Articles Growing Up Tethered by Sherry Turkle and Becoming Part of Something Bigger Than Ourselves by Jane McGonigal Essay

Media Common ThemesThis unit about media brings to light some very different sides of the same argument how are kids today affected by technology? Some of the skeptical adults in our society claim that the young people of this generation are too involved with their online friends, and that they miss out on what is happening in real life. However, the connections made online can also be influential in the problems of the current world. Growing Up Tethered, by Sherry Turkle, is an article about young people who feel a deep connection to texting, social media, and the internet, and the problems that may arise from that. The second reading, Becoming Part of Something Bigger Than Ourselves, by Jane McGonigal, discusses the epic scale of video games and how our generation benefits from it. These two stories that I am comparing have shown multiple angles to video games, cell phones, and my generation. Although there are two distinctly different viewpoints by these authors, there are common themes of community, relationships, and the danger of becoming to dependent on technology.In the article by McGonigal, she discusses how a few million gamers achieved the largest army that we have ever seen in their virtual world. While this seemingly has no real-world consequence, it has been teaching todays youth how to be a part of a larger goal. McGonigal discusses meaning, and how we all strive to find meaning in our lives. The meaning that is found in video games comes from an epic-scale world to explore, helping those around you to become stronger, and working together as a team for one common goal (McGonigal, 445). Kids who play these kids of open-world games can see that even thought they are one small entity, they matter immensely in the broad scheme (McGonigal, 446). She says on page 447, Games are showing us exactly what we want out of life more satisfying work, better hope of success, stronger social...

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