There are many times I find myself sitting alone wishing for company. I live alone in a one-bedroom apartment with just my dog. Often I wish I had roommates or wish my friends would come over to keep me company. Then I think back to my freshman year, living in a dorm with three other girls and I remember how much I appreciate having some alone time.
I feel that I am not alone in this situation. Some people hate being alone so much that they are actually afraid of being alone. These are the people that are constantly glued to their iPhones, awaiting the arrival of a text message, Facebook post, Tweet, or friend request. Being alone is not an option for many. They must occupy themselves with technology used to contact others.
Society has not always had such a fear of solidarity, so what has caused this? The answer is technology. The Web has made privacy and solitude almost non-existent. There have been many benefits to this. For example, people across the globe who could not communicate before can do so easily. However, solitude is also very important and the lack of it is creating havoc on humans.
Solitude is important because it gives us time to think. This is time for reading, learning and absorbing information. However, since we are so concerned with finding someone to connect with, no longer do we take the time to absorb and understand. Our attention spans are limited. Today instead of reading we merely skim and scan material without absorbing it.
Also, solitude is important to discover oneself. If you are constantly being bombarded by what others think, then you may not have the time or concentration to discover what you actually think. Instead of developing an opinion of your own you end up repeating the opinion of others. People also feel that they can share everything with their friends and followers, which gives away any sense of privacy of their lives.
Overall, technology has benefitted us by allowing us to communicate easily with others. However, it has also taken away are ability and desire to be alone. Without solidarity, how can we ever really be ourselves?