Essay on The Numbing of the American Mind Culture as...

ENLIGHTENED SURRENDER How many essays have been written about American culture? How many books dedicated to the intense scrutiny of every aspect of our modern society? Countless thoughts, countless theories—many of them lost in the very chaos that the authors spent 300 pages explaining. There are always solutions, which their creators seem entirely convinced will solve this mess, but the truth is that these ideas are often impractical and unrealistic. But no one writes an entire book complaining without offering us something at the conclusion. Sociologists parade around with their own superfluous speculations, conflicting and contradictory, but this must be better than unresolved pessimism, right? Thomas de Zengotita doesn’t†¦show more content†¦He muses, â€Å"For you youngsters out there, take it from Dad: it used to be Wheaties, Corn Flakes, Cheerios, Rice Krispies—and that was about it. One for each grain, see? Same for fruit juice. But now? Pineapple/Banana/Grape or Strawberry/Orange/Kiwi anyone?† (de Zengotita 343-344). Throughout the essay we believe that de Zengotita has it all figured out. Have you ever heard the most complex issues explained so well? He discusses the plight of modern America with such ease, and with such conviction that the reader is compelled to accept even the bleakest of views as unfortunate truth. He clearly knows his subject, and if he had offered some advice at the end, we would have eaten it up. But he didn’t. It isn’t the overall content of the essay I wish to address; it is one sentence at the end. After doing the whole â€Å"here-is-the-problem-in-sickeningdetail† thing, where other authors would begin to offer their insights into resolving the issues, de Zengotita does not. Instead, he offers one simple thought, â€Å"What else could we do?† (351). If he had been speaking, he basically would have shrugged and walked away—the equivalent to â€Å"Oh, well.† It’s the kind of thing that makes you want to laugh, and then immediately hit someone for making you read twelve pages just to end up at that comment. We wanted answers, explanation, and condolence—not problems without answers. Not only that, but itShow MoreRelatedDoes Technology Affects Culture or Does Culture Affect Technology?970 Words   |  4 Pages Culture is the unique set of beliefs, behaviors, and way of life of a group of people. Our culture, according to many, is undergoing a steady increase in the culture gap, and for the most part, their main target when seeking whom to blame is technology. Our culture drives us to pursue success and pleasure, complete tasks efficiently, and contemplate how to improve the lives of the generations to come and ourselves. 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