Away with human interaction?

Jexi (2019)
Director: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore

There is nothing groundbreaking about this movie. It reminds me of at least two films which dealt with the same theme. In 1984 'Electric Dreams', a desktop computer, Edgar, falls in love with the protagonist's crush. After successfully wooing his beau with the help of his computer, his life turns into a living hell. His computer controls most of his home devices and goes hyperdrive to sabotage the protagonist's work and love life. In 2013 'Her', the protagonist falls in love with an Operating System, AI.

All three films show us how hooked we are to our digital devices. We avoid human interaction and feel most comfortable left to our devices. Furthermore, interaction with the same kind becomes increasingly more difficult. Even though we were told that we are social animals who thrive on human dealings, somehow, it becomes more and more an uphill battle. People demand. They want to be treated special. They demand the right not to be offended. We need to be politically correct when addressing them. The power dynamics put them in such a place that they can get away with murder. 

They say the customer is always right, so they demand their rights to be served as if the servant has no rights. There is no such thing as implied consent. It seems like everything has to be written, signed and glazed with a seal of legal approval.

As human interaction becomes increasingly laborious, many find solace in the company of sologamy and interactive digital devices. It can be switched off at will and does not leave a substantial legal bill. Maybe not. Our digital footprints stay in the cloud forever, waiting to be picked up and used against us when the time is ripe. If you do not believe me, ask Rashmi Samant, who won the Oxford Union Presidentship in 2020. She was cyberbullied and forced to resign after her past internet entries of years previously alleging racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, you name it!

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Engage, disengage or disappear!

Omphaloskepsis!
(Omphalo = umbilicus,
skepsis = act of looking)

Just how often have we seen people who appear almost in a stuporous state, unarousable by external stimuli? Viewed from this side of the table, it may look like he is self-absorbed or awestruck at the sight of his own genitalia. A clinician may diagnose him to have narcolepsy. In Western Africa, the doctor may give him the spot diagnosis of Trypanosomiasis @ Sleeping Sickness.

A man of the clergy would assume that he is engaged in sincere prayers, engaging with a plea with his Maker bargaining so that everything will be alright. Of course, the correct explanation is none of the above. He is merely immersed in his own digital devices. Being in an almost trance-like state, he insists that very much in touch with the present and that his generation excels in multitasking, something alien to my kind, he asserts.

Navel-gazing?
© Amethyst Aziezéé

A few years ago, a series of pictures used to appear on people's social media pages showing off their pictures of their perfect life as they lie whaling on the beach or sunbathing by the pool. The view is as if they are lying down gazing at navel level. These self-absorbed acts, called navel-gazing, are mere pursuits to ruin the media consumer's day.

Actually, the original word 'navel-gazing' has its origin way back during the time of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The monks in a Greek monastery were described in an 1830 publication jocularly as "...pretended or fancied that they experienced celestial joys when gazing on their umbilical region, in converse with the Deity". Many traditional practices like yoga and qigong use the umbilicus as an energy point to rejuvenate the hidden powers of the body.

The men of God thought that our God-given senses were the ones that get us into trouble most of the time. Our eyes give us evil thoughts; so do our auditory, smell, touch and taste. Hence, they thought that by looking away from stimuli, 'the windows to the soul' can be protected. 

Modern men use it as an excuse not to interact with strangers. Those with an inferiority complex, sociophobia or extreme introvert use navel-gazing (read digital device fixation) as an outlet to keep aloof from the surroundings. He can opt to engage, disengage or disappear with their digital friends. Interacting with a person in the flesh is more cumbersome; the cursory greetings, the niceties, the eye contact, the physical contact and the small talk - too time-consuming!

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.