In addition to playing around with the racial map of US website, I want you to construct a paragraph that fully develops the argument Wilson made in the Post & Courier:
Major Premise:
Because all human beings need solace.
Minor Premises:
Because technology disturbs our solace; and
Because nature restores our solace
Therefore:
We need to spend more time in nature.
Your audience is the typical city-dweller in contemporary society. Determine if any of these premises need their own support, and, if so, construct an argument that will persuade your readers to agree with that premise. Maybe you need to spend a little time defining what we mean by “solace.” Then roll it all up in one big package (that is, paragraph) that has “We need to spend more time in nature” as its main point. Cut and past the ¶ as a reply to this post.
At this very moment you are under mental siege, a tactical assault waged by the world, armed with WiFi and data and catchy chimes. At any given moment you have emails, text messages, game alerts, phone calls, tinder matches, and 17 tweets demanding your attention and it is exhausting. Reprieve is not available, even when you set aside time for yourself, to relax and ignore the world, technology is there, poised to suck you back in the moment you let your guard down. Technology is so prevalent in our everyday lives it’s nearly impossible to attain any degree of solace, and the evidence is clear. Clear in the dark circles on the sleep deprived faces of youth and in the nervous flinch when a chime goes off, ushering you back into a virtual world you can’t seem to escape. Humans need solace, to relax and unwind, to feel some degree of calm in the never ending business of human existence. One means of finding solace that hasn’t failed me yet is to venture into nature- to turn off the pestering phone and enjoy the sensation of grass between your fingers and wind in your hair. To know nature is to know peace unparalleled by anything the advances in technology can offer us, leaving you rejuvenated, calm, and whole.
Nature: a place free of the nagging technology that seems to be ever-growing around us. Technology latches on to our very soul, dragging us down into a life led by anxiety over somebody not texting back – but having “read” your text sent; Snapchat not loading your most recent snap; not having the most recent iPhone or MacBook. When things go awry with our phones, computers, cars, televisions, breakdowns occur, crying children result, temper tantrums can be observed in adults. Technology has become a plague where solace seems distant. Distant until a simple breeze reminds us of the world outside our isolated homes, the world of nature and simple living. The place where all the nagging, soul-dragging stressors seemingly disappear with the wind. Nature offers us all a place to recuperate and relocate our inner peace along with our ballooned soul being lifted from the depths of anxiety. Nature helps to bring peace back into our hectic lives, and helps to balance out the stresses of not being texted, back by reminding us all of the simple pleasures life offers outside of our iPhones.
Technology wrecks havoc on human solace. Our entire lives are reduced to pings and buzzes, nights full of memories are reduced to a single picture, our entire psyche is reduced to a profile that someone can read like a book in under ten minutes, and have fun trying to get people to listen to a thought that is longer than 140 characters. We are not meant to work like this; this is not reality. The world that lives in technology is a world devoid of emotion. Thoughts naturally occur in a “I think this because of this, and I have this feeling that influenced my decision.” Technology forces us to take any actual thought out and put it all into a “I think this” format to a degree so intense that it can effect how we think even off of technology; the use of technology makes the brain act more simply and people don’t actively think of whole, complete, emotional thoughts as often. Being in a city devoid of nature, it is impossible to escape this. In the city, all you see are grey buildings and grey sidewalks. You still have buzz words and images that all either over or under-excite the human brain around every corner, and that is not where we belong.
Nature is our sanitary. It is where the human brain was formed and it is where it is most comfortable. So many people go through life feeling only half-alive if they feel alive at all. Nature, however, is the cure to societies ailments. A study published by the University of Rochester found a direct correlation with how alive people regarded themselves as feeling with how much time they spend in nature. Nature is real; nature is whole. Nature is filled with bright colors and beautiful natural patterns that the brain is subconsciously used to, but in a comforting way; much like a newborn baby finding its birthmother’s voice soothing from its first breath. Without nature, the human spirit dies; many people just let it happen. You can fight it though. Just look at the sunset and remind yourself that things that have happened every single day for thousands of years are more beautiful than anything humans can and will ever create. In nature, you can find peace.
In this day and age of technology, we are constantly experiencing our lives concerned over searching for “Instagram opportunities,” coming up with the best caption, or writing the cleverest tweet. The number next to “followers” or “friends” is more important than the real-life companionships we humans need to survive. Many of our generation would prefer to spend a night in watching Netflix alone than making real connections with real people. However, there is no concrete solace in these posts and numbers—that is, there is no comfort knowing your photo just got 100 likes or that you just completed the fifth season of “Gossip Girl” when you’re sitting at home alone on a Saturday night with no one to talk to. As humans, we need this inherent quality of solace that technology cannot provide. Technology is warping our minds and social habits, and drawing us further and further away from the simple life. Instead of checking Facebook in between study breaks, it would be much more beneficial to talk a walk outside and restore some of that missing connection with nature that provides the solace that technology does not. There is nothing like fresh air or watching the sunset to balance your mind and the hectic happenings of day-to-day life. Never will scrolling through your Instagram feed allow that sort of comfort. The closer we return to nature, and the longer we leave our phones off and at home, the more solace we will find within ourselves.
Today, in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, solace is almost nonexistent. A car drives by honking its horn. A biker yells as a pedestrian walks out in front of them. A phone call. An e-mail. A text message. The hustle and bustle of this lively fast-paced city is all-encompassing. No time for peace; no time for quiet. Technology has created a world of “instant.” There is always something to do and always somewhere to be. Cyber-space allows for immediate action: a tweet, a post, a text. If we aren’t careful, solace will become nonexistent in our own lives. This ingredient becomes a necessary part of our daily lives to remain sane. We need calm. We need nature. We can find solace in a silent sunset. We can find it in the sand as the waves crash down. We can find it in the openness of nature. Making an effort to preserve the environment is so important because humans need solace. Humans need nature.
As technology has grown more powerful, more accessible, more us as humans almost enslaved ourselves to the promise of distraction. There is always something to be updated, whether it be your e-mail accounts, Twitter, Facebook feed, or Instagram posts. We all make the mistake of believing these technological advances are necessary but they are not. These elements take attention away from noticing how tired we are and how emotionally unconnected we feel. Walking down the streets of Charleston, filled to the brim of Spanish moss and historical homes, yet we focus our attention at the same rectangle, desperately trying (and failing) to remain updated the world around us. Solace cannot neither be downloaded, nor found through technology. There is no app to give you the smell of the ocean at high tide or the sound of a breeze rustling the trees above our heads. Nature is the only way to achieve solace because it allows us to breathe, observe how beautiful our world us, and to live in the moment. Technology does not have the capability to allow humans to achieve solace. Nature’s ability to restore our peaceful juxtaposition since the beginning of time has not been lost with the influence of technology. It has only shown us how necessary it is to take time from our busy days to take a moment to appreciate the sense of relaxation that can only be achieved the nature around us. Therefore, nature are vital to human society.
In this era of technology, everyone gravitates towards the newest device or the groundbreaking app. We are completely taken aback by our shiny new toy for all of ten minutes before we move on to the next big thing. This era of technology has plagued us with instant gratification; all it takes to answer any question in the world is a touch. What happened to going outside and playing kickball with friends instead of playing Angry Birds for hours on end? Fresh air, natural lighting, and a landscape of plants and trees is calming as opposed to the harsh lights that shine at our eyes from the television or our smartphones. Human beings need to find comfort in their surroundings. Going for a run in the forest or taking a walk on the beach is more productive mentally and physically than sitting on the couch watching a mindless reality show. Nature very literally provides us with our basic human needs, so it is important to not only conserve nature, but to pay more attention to that ancient oak tree or oligotrophic lake. People need to find solace in something. Technology allows us to waste time and nature allows us to make use of our time. We all lead busy lives where any increase in efficiency brings us solace. Nature is comforting; it brings us solace.
We’ve all had that moment. That moment where so many things seem to go wrong all in the same day. That moment where we feel as if the world and everyone in it is hellbent towards taking us down. That moment where even the simplest of tasks can seem as trying as hiking up a mountain. We’ve all been there. Bent under the pressure of daily life. It is times like these where all humans need solace. We need access to fresh air, the ability to take a deep breath and step away from all the things that are troubling us at the moment. We need anything that can comfort us, console us, calm us, and bring us peace. Luckily, and to the surprise of many, we have access to that right outside the front door. Nature is the one thing that can provide a human solace and peace without fail. In a time where constant email updates, group chats, and deadlines corner us until we’re at our wits-end, we need an outlet from this virtual hell. Nature is exactly the outlet for this purpose. Technology, becoming more and more prominent in everyday life, is easy to get caught up in. It speeds everything up. Eventually we need to be able to slow down and unwind. Nature, a place that has no text alerts or uncooperative colleagues, allows us to sit back and blend into an environment where the strain of day-to-day life is no match for the unaffected beauty and quaintness that it offers.
Today we live in an age where technology has taken over. Teens are obsessed with finding the best picture and coming up with the most clever caption for social media. Adults, without hesitation, respond to the most recent email notification, text message, or call for the sake of keeping up with the heavy demands of their jobs. As a result, nobody is ever at peace. Our reliance on technology makes us forget to leave our homes or to look up from our small screens to appreciate the beauty of the nature that surrounds us. Nature allows humans to escape their frantic, stressful lives and makes them realize the importance of relaxation. Just by taking a walk, watching the sky, or sitting in a park, people can unwind and feel as if their troubles are already taken care of. Nature provides relief and peace, therefore, humans should make more time for nature.
In today’s modern world technology rules above all else. Everywhere you go you see someone hunched over their phone or laptop preoccupied with whatever is happening on their screen rather than the world surrounding them. Every day when I am walking to class, there are at least three people who almost run into me because they were looking at their phone. Technology is disturbing our peace; currently as I am writing this I keep hearing the dinging of my roommate’s phone. Technology has engulfed today’s society, and the only way to escape technology is to surround ourselves with nature. As humans it is in our nature to need time to escape from the hectic lives we live day to day; nature is our solution. Nature rejuvenates our bodies and lets us relax by allowing us a way to escape from the technology that is embedded in the world around us. If you ever go outside to a park put down your phone, and open your eyes up to the beauty that is the natural world. And most importantly relax, spend more time in the natural world we overlook every day, your messages and notifications will still be there when you get back.
It takes walking one block in downtown Charleston to realize that there is a problem regarding technology. The problem is that it is everywhere. Picture yourself walking down King Street- there are stores left and right blaring music to allure shoppers. Look left and someone is blocking the sidewalk by texting and walking slowly. Look right and a group of girls are using a selfie stick to create the next top Instagram pic. There are horns beeping, phones ringing, and texts dinging. In short, technology is a constant distraction and noise in everyday life. It greatly affects people by cutting their thought process short every time their phone goes off. Heads turn as a horn or ring goes off. This creates a mental state that is jumpy and anxious. What is the solution you may ask? Take a break from the problem. Put the technology down and go where one can be restored-nature. What can be better than the natural environment which eliminates blaring distractions? It is necessary for one’s mental health. We all need solace, this means enjoying the outdoors free from the anxiety which technology exudes.
In modern society, humans are overwhelmed with technology. Everyone has a personal portable device that has practically become the center of their existence. Everything from communicating with your friends, to listening to music, to even reading books is now done on a rectangular piece of metal that slides into your pocket. Since the internet connects you to the world constantly, there is no escaping the responsibility and commitment to everything that is sending you notifications. Everyone needs the solace of retreating from their daily duties, and the development of people using their devices constantly is not healthy. In the modern world people need to turn to nature to provide them with the solace and solitude that is being depraved from them. The purity and simplicity of the natural environment is the most powerful way to combat the lack of solace in a life that is constantly being impacted by technology.
There is something about walking around in nature that can’t be imitated. A comforting, peaceful feeling you can’t replicate. Sitting in the library typing away and doing homework is nothing compared to the feeling of walking through the woods watching the leaves fall from the trees or sitting on the beach feeling sand blow through your hair. There is a simple solace that exists in nature and cannot be found anywhere else. In today’s world, technology besieges our society. A chime, a ding, a vibration all control our lives. Whether it’s a text, a snap chat, an email, or a Facebook notification, someone always seems to be trying to get our attention electronically. Ironically, with all these new technologies, social medias, and ways of communication, real connections are lost. People would rather hide in bed and watch Netflix than go out and be social, send a text rather than call and actually talk, or the all time worst match someone on tinder than actually put any effort into meeting new people. Technology is a beautiful thing, and we are fortunate to have all the information in the world at our fingertips, but by gaining all this so easily and at the push of a button, what are we losing? There is something to be said for effort and work ethic that somehow seems to get lost when we are hiding behind our computer screens or glued to our phone; Something that we can’t find on the Internet, but we have to shut off our phones and close our computers to truly understand the real solace of nature.
Your alarm rudely awakens you from your peaceful slumber with its strident ringing. You go through your morning routine, and as you glimpse at your watch you realize you are already running late. The congestion of the city streets further weighs you down as you realize you will inevitably be late. Surrounded by blank walls, you stare at a screen until it’s time to go home and start staring at a different screen. You go to sleep and repeat. You wonder why you are depressed, anxious, jittery, or just sad. You are missing solace; the quiet and perfect consolation which triumphs over the ever-present problems of the mundane. Without it you cannot function properly. You are missing solace because your life is constantly interrupted by technology. The ringing of the alarm wakes you from your peaceful slumber. The watch faithfully reminds you that you are running late, and the email from your boss about that upcoming project kindly greets you when you pull out your phone. Technology is the ever-present reminder of the busy life you lead. Solace can be found; however, it cannot be found in ourselves. It takes the magnitude and beauty of something outside of ourselves to remind us that our problems are not that big. The rush of the waterfall whispers not to worry. The resplendent lily gives you hope for things yet to come. The warmth of the sunrise reminds you that this darkness will not last forever. In nature you realize that there is beauty and joy everywhere and that it remains there faithfully. This consolation is more than enough to make you realize that the upcoming project for your boss is not that big of deal. So toss away your phone, leave the city, and go listen to the whisper of the waterfall.
Technology is like nails on a chalk board when it comes to achieving solace; annoying, disruptive, and irritating. I haven’t sat through one course in college without receiving at least 50 texts about issues that are all much to “pressing” for me to handle at a later date. Everyone wants something from you during every waking moment of your life. The biggest piece of technology that is a disturbance is the news. Being from Baltimore, there is unfortunately a murder on the news every morning. Wouldn’t my life be a little more pleasant if I turned on the TV to a piece about what people are doing to help our city? I’d compare life without the news as complacent ignorance. Constantly hearing about what is wrong with society really weighs heavily on people’s psyche.
Solace is a time to relax and “un-plug” from whatever is bothering you. Today, stresses from work, school, and social circles are ever present in daily life. To me, getting outside away from technology could be the best thing for a person. Swinging in an Eno, slack lining, reading a book under a tree, or taking a nap in the hot Charleston sun are all great ways to seek some relief from life for a while. Time away from everything will help to mellow you out and make you collect your thoughts.
After a long day, people come home yearning for solace. Nowadays, people come home and watch television, play on their apps on their iPhones, or talk on the phone for endless hours. Instead of taking the time to breathe and break away from the gossip and drama that plagues us at work, school, the gym, etc., we tend to search for it on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and other social media outlets. Technology prevents us from taking the time to unwind and relax, thwarting off peace. All humans need solace, but our phones are always chiming with a missed call or text; our televisions are always on, with the latest news or talk shows broadcasting, leaving us with no time to find solace in the quietness of life. Nature is the solution. Instead of watching T.V. and videos, we should observe nature’s beauty. Nature has a way of providing comfort in a technology- ridden world, offering us breathtaking views of landscapes filled with flowers, animals, and more. So, the next time you are thinking about updating your Facebook status, sit outside and simply watch. Garden. Fish. Open your eyes to your surroundings, instead of focusing on a little screen. Allow nature to restore your solace.
Technology is the ever-present nuisance in modern society. Our lives are now dominated by constant buzzing of texts and endless updates from social media sites. It is difficult to have a conversation with someone or a dinner that is not interrupted by the flash of a smartphone. People are loosing the ability not only interact with others without the aid of technology, but also the ability to find solace. The persistent nature of technology begs our attention at all times – whenever there is a pause in the hustle of everyday life, it has become second nature for humans to check their phones instead of taking a moment to reflect or sit quiet. Our society has lost the importance of reflection and has become uncomfortable with silence. This solace that was once in our society brought calmness and a since of serenity. Statistically, there are far more people living in the United States today with depression than any other decade. We go from day to day without taking the time to appreciate the world around us because we are all so fixated on the life brought to us by the internet. Taking time out of one’s day to spend time in nature restores the peace that is taken away by technology. Spending time “unplugged” and outdoors cures humans of the anxiety caused by endless notification.
Although technology has greatly advanced our society, it has also inhibited our growth mentally and physically. Technology is like a maze with no exit. It is unavoidable, even in nature. I will go outside to “escape technology,” to find myself taking a picture of the “most beautiful college campus,” sunset, or myself “relaxing” outside. I will admit that a cool breeze on Marion Square and my Bible will help me break the chains of technology and reach my solace. I rely on my iPhone and Macbook Pro more than anything else. I just recently bought an external hard drive so if something happens to my Macbook I won’t break a sweat because I have a copy of it right at my fingertips. Try to imagine a world with no selfie sticks, Keurig coffee makers, and cell phones. You would have to use a mirror to see yourself, use a kettle and fire to heat up water for the coffee, and use a pen and paper or face-to-face communication. The only place where solace has a chance of being achieved is where phone service or wifi are not available; these particular places are few and far between in 2015. Technology controls every part of my life and everyone else’s whether we want to admit it or not.
Technology overwhelms us without us even realizing it, until we are all but numb to the things happening around it. We are bombarded constantly with stimulus and information our brains can not possibly process it all and we are left in a sort of half awareness of everything. Nature has the polar opposite effect, it brings us back to peace and tranquility, it allows our minds to rest from the constant stream of information that our various forms of social media are shoving down our throats. Nature is, well, natural to us, we are connected to it as living creatures and restores to us the peace that technology takes away. Technology is not evil, it has advanced our society and helped us make brilliant discoveries that help millions of people improve their live. Even so it inhibits productivity, at least for me, I know I would get so much work done and have so much free time for self improvement if i didn’t spend countless hours scrolling mindlessly from one social media platform to another not really paying attention to or caring about any of the things that im seeing. A break in technology and the never ending stream of impersonal communication would do a body good.
Our modern society is built up on speed and efficiency, so no surprise that people are always in a hurry as they are trying to keep up with the world around them while checking their phone for constant notifications. As in everyday life, people cannot give a second of their time to wait for something, everyone has to be available all the time, which means constantly checking notifications and answering messages, emails, and so on. This means that people are constantly in a hurry and no longer take time for themselves or their close ones, which causes stress, if not distress. To be able to be normal again, people may feel like they need a sense of comfort, or consolation that everything will turn out how it’s supposed to in the end – solace, if you please. That is why we need to spend more time in nature. The peace and quiet of nature helps to restore solace and give peace of mind, as in nature, everything happens at the pace it is supposed to happen, no slower and now quicker, and the rush of our modern lives is made insignificant by the beauty and peace of nature.