Imagination; a Humans Special Sence Essays

Imagination; a Humans Special Sence Essays Imagination; a Humans Special Sence Essay Imagination; a Humans Special Sence Essay Essay Topic: Invisible Man Daimaly Gines 10/25/12 FD #3 Expos, Section Imagination: A Human’s Special Sense Human beings have the ability to create their own individual worlds through imagination. However, the imagination is limited because of the constant use of technology and the reliance on vision. The technological culture has separated humans from the actual world and their senses; much like vision has done. In the essay â€Å"The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses†, Juhani Pallasmaa focuses on the exploration of the senses and how they interact with one another. We also see his discussion on how vision can affect the human experience. The more visually capable we are, the more we begin to lose our sense of imagination. Similarly in the essay â€Å"Is Google Making Us Stupid? †, Nicolas Carr argues that the more we rely on technology and the Internet, the more it will affect humans in today’s world, as well as our ability to read and comprehend. Living in a society that relies mostly on technology, individuals fail to create a balance between the Internet and their actual senses. The more we depend on technology, the less room there is for the mind to imagine. Our brains have reached a point where we fall into a daydream with anything that does not catch our attention. Furthermore, in â€Å"The Mind’s Eye†, Oliver Sacks explores some of the most fundamental facets of human experience: how we see in three dimensions, how we represent the world internally when our eyes are closed, and how remarkable, and unpredictable our brains find new ways of creating new worlds through imagination. The obscuring of vision leads to imagination but once we begin to imagine, we gain the ability to preserve and envision the world around us in a new way, and thus we use the senses to help us imagine more deeply. The experience of living affects imagination because vision and technology does not allow us to stay focused because we have become used to the commodity of technology and vision. Carr states, â€Å"now my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages† (67). In other words, Carr is explaining how the constant use of technology is depriving him from actually sitting down, reading a book and focusing on the text. The Internet is reprogramming us to imagine more often and not pay attention to what one is actually doing in the real world. The reading and analysis has now become a struggle for individuals whose life is surrounded by technology. Similarly, Sacks describes the idea that when we are on the level of imagination, one can no longer interpret â€Å"what is visual, what is auditory, what is image, what is language, what is intellectual, what is emotional- they are all fused together and imbued with our own individual perspectives and values† (317). Imagination makes us realize our own individual worlds. Once we have imagination, what we see, hear, feel and touch is brought together into our own view. When we imagine, we begin to lose the ability to see what is going on in society. This occurs because vision and technology are being concealed. For example, when we begin to daydream, someone may try and get our attention to bring them back to reality, but it may take longer for us to realize that someone wanted to get our attention. This happens because we get caught up into our own imagination and forget what is going on in the outside world. Similarly, Pallasmaa states that, â€Å"deep shadows and darkness are essential, because they dim the sharpness of vision, make depth and distance ambiguous, and invite unconscious peripheral vision and tactile fantasy† (286). Pallasmaa is explaining that darkness is essential for one to be able to imagine. It obscures vision into darkness. The darkness makes the world around us â€Å"ambiguous† and allows imagination to take effect. Carr’s idea of our minds drifting away from what we are actually doing is similar to what Pallasmaa is saying because the darkness is a distraction in which leads to imagination. The high use of technology leaves no room for imagination because we cannot think on our own. One’s imagination is enlightened when fenced by darkness because individuals have room to imagine and listen to their surroundings. We see that our imagination comes into play when our vision is obscured. Without the sense of vision, our other senses quickly assume richness and power. This occurs to blind people such as Hull, who at the age of forty-eight became completely blind. Sacks states that Hull â€Å"speaks of how the sound of the ain, never before accorded much attention, can now delineate a whole landscape for him†¦it throws a coloured blanket over previously invisible things† (304). In other words, we see that Sacks is showing us how strong Hull’s imagination was after becoming blind. Just because Hull became blind, it did not mean that Hull’s life was over. On the other hand, it was a new beginning for Hull. He was able to make use of his other se nses and see how important they are. With Hull’s imagination also came a sense of intimacy with his surroundings. He felt as though with his strong visual imagery, he had a strong sense of closeness, which evolves from imagining. The term ‘delineate’ has a significant meaning in Sack’s text because imagination is what led Hull to be able to portray the images precisely in his mind. Similarly, Pallasmaa states, â€Å"anyone who has half-woken up to the sound of a train or an ambulance in a nocturnal city, and though his/her sleep experienced the space of the city with its countless inhabitants scattered within its structures, knows the power of sound over the imagination† (289). Our sense of imagination quickly takes over and we begin to think and imagine what is happening around us. Pallasmaa is conveying to us that the imagination can also begin with the sense of sound. The term ‘delineate’ is also presented in Pallasmaa’s text because sound and imagination led us to wake up and hear the train or imagine the train rushing by on the train tracks. The imagination is just as strong as any of the other senses. One’s vision has to be obscured in order to be able to imagine. Imagination can lead to a whole new sense, a new world and even a new way we experience our lives today. Today’s technological culture has the ability to paralyze our imagination because we spend a lot of time using the Internet. In order for one to be able to imagine vision and technology should be hidden. If we surround ourselves with technology and the Internet, then we will have no room for imagination. The Net absorbs content from our everyday lives and makes them into ads that individuals will quickly become attracted to when using the Internet. The Internet today wants to â€Å"scatter our attention and diffuse our concentration† (Carr 71). In other words, what Carr is arguing is that the purpose of technology and the Internet is to make us unfocused on what is going on around us. When one is constantly distracted by technology, there is no room for the mind to imagine. Our concentration often begins to drift because of the high use of technology. This is what leads our minds to begin to slumber into a daydream. The absence of imagination leads to a lack of closeness. Our senses become alienated from us because of the use of technology. The senses are alienated and so is our imagination because we are constantly on the Internet searching the web, looking for a distraction. Pallasmaa’s ideas agree with Carr’s when Carr states that, â€Å"the imagination and daydreaming are stimulated by dim light and shadows† (286). Pallasmaa’s focus is on the idea of imagination and daydreaming being inspired by vision and shadows. When in darkness our senses are able to unite themselves more because there is no vision. When sitting in front of a computer screen, one is only focused on the Internet and not making use of the other senses. Similarly with darkness, when in a dark room, our senses are able to be used more and so is our imagination. For example, when sitting in a dark room where vision is obscured, the other senses come into play. Our attention, concentration and imagination are linked with the senses. Our imagination is sparked when our mind is not completely focused. If one relies on technology alone, then how is the mind able to imagine and daydream, if all technology does is fill our minds with ideas that do not allow individuals to imagine on our own. Humans place so much emphasis on technology and vision that they do not notice that their senses are becoming detached. The use of technology and vision changed our experience of being because there is no room for imagination to occur. The sense of imagination is essential in today’s society because we are able to ‘see’ deeper into the world and create new ideas and visuals that only the human mind can create. This is why the blind people that Sack’s mentions in his text have much stronger senses and imagination because they are able to ‘see’ even though they are not sighted. The imagination will soon be considered another of our senses. The sense of imagination has created a whole new world for humans to explore and comprehend. If we ignore our imagination and just stick to technology because it is right at our fingertips, then we will not have the chance to enjoy our sixth sense of imagination. Imagination allows us to form, picture the future in our mind, and to perceive the beauty of natures creativity. It has allowed mankind to create and progress, over the ages. We should never forget about our imagination because even technology was created with imagination. Technology may have been created with imagination but now that we have the Internet and technology, we do not want to imagine for ourselves. How will society continue to progress if we do not imagine what we would like the world to be in twenty years. Without imagination humans would not be where they are today. Everything that makes us humans more efficient in today’s technological culture was imagined centuries ago. At the end of a long day, the majority of us sits down and just daydream about their day or what life will be like in about twenty years. Everyone has the ability to imagine in today’s society, it’s just the matter of finding ones inner thought and not being caught up with the constant use of vision and technology.