When reading the article “The End of Solitude” I realized that I have noticed everything said in the article through my younger sister and myself. The difference in our generations can be seen as very similar at times, but when it comes to requiring solitude, we differ greatly. My younger sister Casey constantly needs someone around her, whether it is eating, watching TV, grocery shopping, studying, or feeding her cat. I on the other hand can’t work properly if there are too many people round when I am trying to accomplish a specific task. I like my solitude when concentrating, yet my sister’s generation is afraid of it. After being in the office all day crammed with people in meetings and almost colliding in the hallways as people go to and from appointments, I am overjoyed to come home to an empty house. Even though it doesn’t last long, having a couple hours before the rest of the household arrives can mean the difference between total relaxation and a stress overload.
The reason this occurs is because when I was growing up, Facebook, texting, and twitter didn’t even exist. If someone wanted to send a message to someone they would send an e-mail, or call them. In my Casey’s generation, Facebook had been established at a very early age. Texting was a recognized as a relevant communication and Twitter was just getting started. This constant communication creates a constant support that becomes the normal for many people of Casey’s generation. Instead of being a time to think and reflect on your own, solitude is seen as a lonely and vacant time, and many of that generation will do almost anything to get away from the idea of being alone.
Eventually it feels like everyone will constantly be with another person at all times, and we will be at the will of our idea of visibility being the be all end all.