The first paper for my Intro to Media Studies class was a challenge. It wasn’t hard to actually write the paper, but in order to begin writing, I had to complete the professor’s challenge of going a day without screens. This meant no phone, no laptop, no TV and no iPod.
When my classmates heard this assignment, many of them immediately began complaining that the project was unfair. Didn’t the professor understand they needed screens to get stuff done? They didn’t seem to understand this was exactly the point of the project.
Others, like myself, were cocky. I was sure I used screens much less than my peers, and would breeze through this project. The only social media platform I use is Facebook, and I only use it to procrastinate on homework. However, I soon discovered the challenge wasn’t that easy.
The challenge extended over two days of struggle after my first attempt became more of a day with marginally fewer screens.
My first attempt taught me I needed to prepare better — both mentally and for functionality. I expected to sit down and simply read for 12 hours, but was much aggrieved to discover my willpower was not as strong as I thought. My fingers twitched constantly and I bargained with myself in order to attain just five more minutes with my beloved technology. I was so bored.
The initial consequences of renouncing screens for a day were as predictable as they were frightening. Convenience no longer existed. My roommate forgot to wake me up (thanks a lot, roomie), and I missed my first class. I didn’t know what to wear because I couldn’t check the weather and sticking my hand out the door was too much effort. Then, having no one within yelling distance to contact, I had to guess bus schedule times and show up at the stop 40 minutes early, just in case.
The struggles of my first try made a second day without screens necessary. The second day was much more successful, but it required a mental rally. I was prepared and even managed to attain a watch — albeit one that stopped working about an hour into the challenge.
If I had to sum up the day in one word, it would be “boring.” There was so much waiting — for class to start, in the Starbucks line, for the bus — and I couldn’t flip through my phone for distraction. I spent the majority of the day without screens, but not the entirety of it. The challenge ended when I was struck with the desire to binge watch “Doctor Who.” I needed the mindlessness of TV after a day of test taking and writing six pages of a short story by hand.
Needless to say, I should not have been so sure of myself going into the challenge; I was awful at it. I’m pretty sure we were all awful at it, which, undoubtedly, was the point. The challenge wasn’t trying to say we should drop all technology, but rather we should be more aware of exactly how much we depend on it. We should be aware of how often we reach for the phones in our pockets and just how this has affected the way we live and think.
There is a gap between one generation and the next and, often times, this gap is widened by technology. So what is the effect? How different are we from those who came before us, and how much of this can be attributed to screens dominating our lives?
Abigail’s column runs biweekly Wednesdays. She can be reached at a.lague@cavalierdaily.com.
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