When me and my 5 other female roommates moved into our house late this summer, we had no cable or internet. Forced to resort to more antiquated forms of entertainment, we turned to the DVD player. I pulled out Season 2 of Sex and the City, discs that I had casually thrown into my bag. While I have long been a devout follower of Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte, I didn't expect all of my roommates to feel the same way. But when one of them rejoiced at the gem I had just pulled, the rest had no choice but to sit down and watch the only moving screen in the house.
My generation, the college age girls, find ourselves in a unique perspective with regards to Sex and the City. Most of us know what it is, the more educated have watched severely edited reruns on E! or TBS. However, to be indoctrinated into the true SATC culture akin to that of the late nineties and early millennium, one has to watch them in their unedited glory. This inevitably leads to a quick and gripping addiction similar to the one my roommates find themselves in now. SATC dominates our television. It's on morning, noon, and night, not that I'm complaining. What surprised and delighted me most about their new past-time was not how quickly they fell for it, but how hard. It didn't take long for the show to become a part of our daily routine, for quotes to be thrown around, and for each girl to try and figure out which character she most resembles. Not only that, but my roommates still found the stories of SATC to be as fresh and as innovative as they were when they first aired, as many as 15 years ago.
The only technological connection Carrie and and my roommates have is a laptop. She never texted, skyped, blogged, or even instant messaged, yet themes from the show still resonate today. High praises for the writers of the show for crafting a series that remains relevant, yet it got me thinking about the role technology plays in our lives and how exactly SATC stays this relevant. Carrie and the girls never experienced their relationships through a technological medium. They've never facebook friend requested a crush or drunk texted their ex. They experienced, for the most part, their relationships the way relationships should be experienced; in person. In our modern world where there are so many new ways to communicate, maybe there only should be one. Watching SATC allowed my roommates to imagine a world in which humans were forced to communicate and confront their emotions, without any modern day technological crutches. Maybe we're just latching on to the one thing in our lives that isn't complicated by technology, a world where everything is out in the open.
Or maybe this terrifies us, so we just watch other people do it.
Thoughtful post. There seems to be common thread in this class's posts: a backlash against technology. It is destroying childhood, interpersonal relationships, the ability to make eye contact, etc. No doubt all true. But it isn't going away. It's another way to connect and that doesn't mean it needs to replace other ways. True, it becomes something else to worry about -- new ways to catch people in lies. "Transparency" is a word of the moment. Privacy doesn't seem to worry anybody anymore. Maybe you should think about writing a SEX AND THE CITY for the current generation. And I hope and pray it doesn't turn out like GIRLS.
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