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1 Diego Wong Teacher: Lauren Albin ENGL 1102 Sec: 71 09/07/16

Is technology tearing families apart?

I chose this image because I think it satirically shows how modern technology, such as smartphones, tablets, and computers, has begun to “control” human beings. The first thing we can see is how those gizmos are controlling each member of this family; they are all staring straight at the screen like if they were hypnotized. Although the image is very exaggerated, I believe that we are not as far as we may think we are in doing something similar. This painting, made by artist Paweł Kuczyński, shows the four members of the common family (father, mother, son, and daughter) sitting at the dinner table praying to God and saying Grace before they begin eating. However, instead of plates, silverware and obviously, food, that should be on the table, we can see that there are smartphones and tablets taking the place of

2 where these items should be. More astonishingly, the main dish placed on the center of the table is actually a Wi-Fi modem. I like to describe this as literally “consuming” technology all the time, even at dinnertime and as a family. Tragically, to Kuczyński’s eyes we have come to this point as humans. I believe that Paweł Kuczyński painted this picture to tell us that this is what we look like when we get addicted to social media, games, and browsing the internet. As human society evolves, technology cannot get left behind so it also advances. As time passes, man is constantly adapting to its new hi-tech environment. Man is always creating new technology, each one better than the previous. However, as encouraging and uplifting as this may sound, there are several drawbacks that come out of this new “Tech Era”. These drawbacks are what Paweł Kuczyński tries to illustrate in his paintings. For example, I believe that the dark gray color and contrasts of this painting suggest that it is not a “joyful dinner”. It rather looks like if the gizmos were controlling the family, similar to Kuczyński’s most famous painting: “Control”, where it shows Pokémon Go’s Pikachu “controlling” a person playing the game on his smartphone. Nevertheless, the colors make the scene look tragic, dark and somewhat creepy, like if all hope in humanity were lost. Also, just by the way each of the family members are almost bowing down to their tablets when praying you can tell that they are addicted to them, and are much more into them than they are of their own family. I mean, they are thanking god for having technology on the table! Another example is how Kuczyński demonstrates blocking yourself from human, or in this case, family contact. In other words, it is clear that in today’s society most kids and teenagers prefer chatting online with their friends than in real person. I think this is tragic because online chatting could never replace real human contact. Therefore, Kuczyński paints the image of this sad scene, where not only the kids, but the entire family is “hooked up” on these worthless gizmos. It looks like the old traditional saying: physical objects cannot replace

3 love or friendship is starting to degenerate. But why are teenagers starting to focus so much on their phones and forgetting about meeting people or being with their family? This brings us to the third reason. I believe that these teenagers feel an “empty space” inside them. They might feel like they need friends, or can’t socially interact, and they try to avoid these human qualities by hiding from them in their phones all day, living in a “fantasy land”. However, this” fantasy land” sure seems dark and creepy, such as the way it is showed in Kuczyński’s painting, with those kids avoiding contact with their parents and having their phones in their face, probably all day. As I previously said, those dark shades of gray and black sure symbolize complete heartbreak in the intimacy of the family in this painting. Families like these are what’s worrying scientists and doctors who study the behavior of people who are addicted to technology. It is tragic to say the truth, but technology is dominating us and taking control of our lives, of our daily routines and chores, and blocking our path to socializing and meeting new people, which, I believe, is essential for future human development.

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Works Cited:

Chin, Mallory. "Artist Paweł Kuczyński Shows Us His Satirical Take on 'Pokémon GO'" Hypebeast. N.p., 29 July 2016. Web. 06 Sept. 2016. .

Kuczynski, Pawel. "Dinner - Pawel Kuczynski - Canvas Artwork." Pictorem. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Sept. 2016. < http://www.pictorem.com/56656/dinner.html>....