Explusion Of Companionship In Alone Together By Sherry Turkle

With the advent of scientific and technological era, humans’ lives develop a lot. On one hand, connecting with others through texting has in recent decades become an integral part of people’s daily lives. On the other hand, social robots become people’s companions. These achievements affect relationships between people in the end. At the same time, many people choose face-to-face talking to preserve the traditional value. In the essay “Alone Together”, Sherry Turkle witnesses the way communication changes between people. Technology makes it easy and quick to communicate with others. However, technology also changes the traditional concepts and brings out new dilemmas. On the contrary, in the essay “In the Forest of Gombe”, without technology,

People are always looking for companionship; in the modern society, sociable robots help people eliminate loneliness, but also result in new problems. People at times feel lonely, so sociable robots were invented to take care of them. People gradually get used to robots because they get companionship easily instead of spending much time building friendship with others for companionship. Although accompanied by robots, people are still alone. Turkle illustrates it as “illusion of companionship”. People always talk to social robots when they feel lonely, because they can get answers very quickly that makes them feel comfort. However, robots do not have emotions that used for understanding others, but programmed to answer several words once as response. For example, Miriam is abandoned by her son. Since living in the nursing home, the therapeutic robot, Paro, is the only partner that stays with Miriam and comforts her when she was alone. In fact, Miriam still alone because Paro cannot understand her. Situation become worse when increasing amounts of people regard the relationship with robots as intimacy. They

Turkle clarifies it as “I find people willing to seriously consider robots not only as pets but as potential friends, confidants, and even romantic partners”(Turkle 271). She objects this opinion strongly because people relate to each other’s feelings through shared experiences, follow the cycle of life, and understand loss and death. However, robots are out of this loop. Although some argue that a robot will never cheat nor cause them heartbreak, they do not realize that a love relationship requires robots lack the ability to look at the world from the other’s viewpoint while a love relationship requires. Pets also stay with people when they feel lonely, but no one will suggest humans have relationship with pets, because it contradicted the traditional concepts, as do robots. When people are tired of the modern society, they will escape it so that no one can disturb them. After losing her husband, Goodall decides to go to the forest in Gombe. In the early morning, Goodall wakes up