The paradox of modern life

We live in the space age. We have made vast strides in many fields including transportation, energy, communication, agriculture and medical science. Modern jets will take us to any place in the world in a matter of hours. By pressing a button we can contact anyone in any part of the world in a fraction of a minute. Scientists have developed new methods to multiply the harvest of various crops to meet the needs of the growing population. Medical science has found cures for most of the deadly diseases such as smallpox and tuberculosis. With all these advances made during the past few centuries, man finds that he is missing something in life. He is unhappy, to put it very bluntly.

Modern technology has provided us with many time-saving devices to make our lives happy. Washing machines, computers, mobile phones, the radio, television and so many other gadgets help us to ease some of our tedious tasks. However, man finds that he is running short of time. He has to cope with so many appointments, commitments and planning. Most of his time is spent in office, factory or in travelling and at the end of the day he finds that he has no time to perform anything else.

Nobody seems to know why and how time has become such a precious commodity. With all his time-saving devices, time seems to elude him in strange ways. In fact, modern man does not complain of inadequacy of money or other resources. The eternal complaint he makes is that he has no time for important tasks. Jeremy Rifkin, a social critic of repute, says, "It is ironic in a culture so committed to saving time that we feel increasingly deprived of the very thing we value." When we invent more and more time-saving devices, we find that the time on our hands is becoming less and less. If we compare modern man with his ancient counterpart, we will be surprised to note that the former is in a pitiable state as far as time is concerned.

Television

Unknown to many of us, television has robbed a big chunk of our precious time saved through time-saving devices. This is like giving something with your right hand and taking it back with your left hand! On the other hand, consumerism has taken a firm grip on our lives. Most of us want to fill our homes with the most sophisticated and expensive items. The craze for expensive sofas, air-conditioners, and vehicles has become a sine qua non in modern life. Of course, man has to eat and dress well without wasting his resources on non-essentials.

Mass media advertising has created a need in everybody to buy what is not so essential to life. We are inundated with modern cellular phones, expensive vehicles and other household items. We sometimes run into debt to buy these advertised products only to regret later. Most of the time we try to compare ourselves with our well-to-do neighbours. By trying to emulate others in this way, we tend to waste our time, money and energy in large doses.

The time-saving devices are not going to help man to lead a happy life. Instead he has become more and more stressed and confused. The situation is so intense that some people seek psychological and psychiatric treatment for various ills. We have come to a stage where we do not know what we really need and what we do not need. The main problem is that we are exposed to a deluge of information through newspapers, television and the internet. As one psychologist put it succinctly, people are suffering from ‘information anxiety’.

The vast strides in medical science has helped man to extend his life span. For instance, the life expectancy in the United States has increased from 47 to 75 years. This has been possible because people no longer die of contagious and infectious diseases as they did sometime ago. Tuberculosis, typhoid and smallpox are largely under control today.

With all such advances in medicine, the cost of medical care has skyrocketed and many quacks are having a field day. Patients go from one specialist to another seeking better and expeditious treatment. Instead of the old diseases, today we have to cope with a crop of new diseases such as heart attacks, hypertension, cancer and diabetes. Sometimes these diseases are attributed to the increasing rate of stress in our lifestyle. Lack of physical exercise, smoking and drinking have added a heavy load to our woes.

Predicament

What led to the present predicament is worth probing. In the 21st century we have both the best and the worst of everything. Communication specialist Erich Fromm says that the progress we value so much has scrambled our value systems. According to him, our traditional value system has been eroded by modern technology. As a result, modern man craves for emotional security more than creature comforts.

Psychologists and sociologists have come up with so many explanations. Despite their theories, modern man leads an unhappy life not knowing how to get rid of his anxieties and contradictions. Sometimes, he seeks the solace of traditional religions or modern-day holy men.

Whatever he does, he needs a sense of direction. Each person has to solve his pressing problems by using his skills and sense of balance. If we fail to find solutions to such pressing problems individually, modern society will find itself in a sea of confusion.