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1. 
   akulinski Teacher
   High School - 9th Grade

   Civilized:

   1. having an advanced or humane culture, society, etc. 2. polite; well-bred; refined.

   I think it is important to start here. Every culture has different ideas about what is civilized. Even within cultures there are different norms. There are also huge differences between norms, mores and laws.

   In American culture it is normal to talk on the phone anywhere and everywhere. It does not bother most people that the practice is rude or offensive to the people around them. Depending on the age or technical prowess of the surrounding people, there are different mores. You might get a dirty look from an older person for example. There are, however, no laws against using a cell phone while riding home on the bus.

   One of the reasons I enjoy this novel so much is the example of choice it shows. Every person everywhere gets to wake up and choose the kind of person they want to be every day. Not everyone has a choice about the circumstances they find themselves in, but their reaction to those circumstances is their own. The excellent part about this choice is that people get to make it on a constant basis.The choice to be civilized and what exactly that means is personal.

   On a personal level, I abhor rudeness. Blathering loudly on a cell phone is rude, as is taking and returning text messages in the middle of a conversation. If you use that as an example, technology, or more specifically the impersonal nature of it, can make us less civilized.

   The other side of that coin is the use of technology to bring people together. Look at this site and its ability to let people reach out to each other and broaden their outlook. Choices, choices, choices.

    

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   Posted by akulinski on Sunday March 8, 2009 at 12:11 AM