Technology In Spike Jonze's Film Her

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Reality is changing constantly because of advances in technology and because people want new and different experiences that improve the quality of life. However, as a result of the advancement in technology, a new trend has emerged where people spend more time interacting with technology than physically interacting with the world or other people. Spike Jonze, the director and writer of the science fiction film “Her”, demonstrates in his film, how Theodore Twombly in an effort to cope with his pending divorce from his wife, starts a relationship with Samantha, an Operating System (O.S.) created to mimic human emotion and behavior. Regardless of the circumstances, Twombly relies on Samantha to provide him with companionship, entertainment, and comfort. In present time, the increasing reliance on technology is already alarming to some, including Jane McGonigal and Sherry Turkle. Both, McGonigal and Turkle wrote the passages titled “Reality is Broken” and “Connectivity and its Discontents” correspondingly, …show more content…

Jonze’s film “Her” supports Turkle’s and McGonigal’s arguments on the role of technology in the lives of people by emphasizing the dependence on technology to provide satisfactions that don’t exist in reality which reduces human contact and dependence while at the same time, defend people against loneliness. McGonigal demonstrates the role of technology by exemplifying the gamer’s dependence on technology to fulfil pleasures that reality lacks and this relates to Twombly’s reliance on technology for comfort. McGonigal writes “The real world just doesn’t offer up as easily the carefully designed pleasures, the thrilling challenges, and the powerful social bonding afforded by virtual environments.” (McGonigal, 223). Reality encloses people in a state of events that exist and may or may not be desirable for an individual. McGonigal

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