Friday, November 3, 2017

Wearied by too much Contact

A  college professor in an article in a diocesan bulletin asks the readers if they are familiar with a word that has only one vowel sound different from another word that means tedious, bored and weariness. The word he introduces to the readers is a new word that those in their twenties use meaning tired of relationships made on SNS. (권태기 and 관태기)
 

Relating on the social network the number of friends increase but intimacy is reduced. Of course, there are different symptoms and degrees of response. College students are concerned with many things: studies, working to increase specifications for future work and part-time work. Making friends on SNS is too time consuming.
 

Strange as it may seem many of those using the social network are faced with more anxiety, feel lonely and empty. Facebook or Twitter would impact some one way, Instagram in another way, the feelings are not always positive. Those they meet on the social network continue to increase but the superficiality of the encounter becomes boring, the heart to heart exchange between intimate friends is missing.
 

Humans are social animals is a phrase that begins to have less meaning. More time is spent eating alone, going to the movies alone, traveling alone for it is restful. Society is giving them less joy and a lot of weariness.
 

A flower stays in one place and spreads its roots underground and conveys its beauty but it doesn't do this alone but helped by the wind, rain and the sun's warmth.  

Young people may have been too anxious to relate with as many as possible and temporarily reached a surfeit. All that may be necessary is a rest from the busy world of SNS and a return to the normal world for a time. 

Korea is traditionally a collectivist society but this is changing especially among the young. Korea has one of the fastest growing single person household increases, helping the trend towards individualism. Still far from the west but the young are quickly closing the gap.