Chapter 11: Technology, Culture and Everyday LIfe

          Reading the chapter about technology and how the lives of the Americans were slowly improving made me think about how our generation really doesn’t know how to live life. At one point in the chapter the authors were saying that when people were taking the railroads to go to another city, they often time had to make seven to eight stops. When reading about this it made me imagine how the people passed time. Were they getting angry about the wait? Or were they so used to the wait that they didn’t mind waiting? This makes me think about my recent trip to Vegas, and how angry people got because our plane was delayed. Our flight was supposed to leave at 11am on Friday and we didn’t leave until almost 1pm. The people waiting for the plane were furious; some people went over to the baggage claim just to complain to the workers. I can’t say that I wasn’t unhappy, but reading this chapter made me think about how people in this generation really don’t have much patience. We have grown up in a society where everything is done fast and we don’t know how to take the time to admire what is around us. Instead of making the best out of the situation people were angry and sulking. I’m pretty sure that by the time we got to Vegas, these people were too frustrated to be excited to finally be on a mini vacation. It really does take going back into history to see how time really has change.