Hermes, the messenger of Gods has been in service of man ever since he stepped into this planet. A social animal like him cannot dispense with the aid and blessing of Hermes. This messenger of Gods began his service by speech, subsequently followed by writing, printing, wireless and presently by satellite. The Herald’s wand wields magic in sphere of information and communication. Its latest name is Information Technology. Communication through technology started with the advent of printing and then its scope has been enlarged and expanded to the sky.
Milestone followed milestones on the way of Hermes. A giant leap was taken in the field towards the end of last century in form of cell phone which is conducted by satellite. Appearance of cell phone has brought a tidal wave in human life. Its uses are amazing but unfortunately it entails some hazards and disadvantages too. Although its use and abuse depend upon its operator, for which the instrument does not need to be blamed. So far as its abuses are concerned it is playing hell with life of human both individually and socially.
Use of telephone has been conducive in making life comfortable and hazardless for decades. Sitting at home with the help of a receiver we could come in contact with people sitting miles away in their home or somewhere else having another such instrument. Of course out of your house, roaming you could not come in touch with a person who is either in his house or in the street. This lacuna was provided for by the successor of the telephone, i.e. mobile phone. The caller’s or receivers’ mobile condition was no longer a restraint in free communication. It is because of this that cell phone is more popularly known as the mobile phone.
This brilliant messenger is borne in pocket and emits various sounds at the tickling on its tiny switch by the caller, no matter from where. The hassle free handy instrument has made the remote parts of this planet come closer to each other. The four corners of the earth appear no longer far and inaccessible to each other. Thus it has promoted the warmth of fellowship in greater degree. The globe has now shrunk to as small as the size of a ball.
Another very great advantage of the mobile phone, over its predecessor, i.e. landline, is that it is feasible and affordable by the man in the streets. As it is a means of communication, larger the network, better the utility.
When all is said in the favor of the mobile phone it is now worthwhile to examine the other side too. Both in individual and social level, although this new technology has proved amazingly advantageous but the question still remains, has it minimized the tension and anxiety in little things? There is a big no here. It has rather intensified our agony. For example, previously when there was neither telephone nor cell phone our anxiety for our parted kith and kin used to remain on hold much longer than it is now. Telephone made it shorter and its successor mobile phone does not allow even a twinkling of the eye. The moment your child leaves the house, your tension starts mounting and with the help of this miniature Hermes your auricular senses keep in constant touch with him. At the event of any petty thing going wrong, may be either with the instrument or more possibly with the network, your heart starts throbbing faster. In one hand the devotees of cell phone argue that it has helped in cementing the human relationship but there is another side of the argument too. Familiarity breeds contempt. Too much nearness is also not good for keeping people amiable to each other. Frequent ding dongs between friends, relatives and spouses may be attributed to this tiny vibrator. It can be put on the dock for breaking homes and estranging friends. It panders to human impetuosity and at a moment of crisis is more likely to aggravate the situation.
Our traffic is in jeopardy. Vehicles have become prone to accidents because of the drivers’ distraction due to the tingling of this mobile device at the time of driving. Though there have been many traffic directives about the non usage of cell phones while driving, who follows?
Our post offices have been rendered workless. Letters and art of letter writing have totally phased out. In school syllabus letter writing as part of the curriculum is almost abolished. Nowadays, people prefer communicating through SMS or text messaging via mobile phones, using broken up code languages.
Famous letters of Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru, “Letter to my daughter”, Dr Johnson’s to his unkind patron and many such literary jewels are now things of the past.
Well although quiet a heavy price we had to pay to bring in this new messenger, it was fine till its use took the deadliest of turns. Throughout the world, the mobile phone started getting used by terrorists to communicate safely and easily to give and take directions of destruction, to their friends and peers.
Somehow, landline telephones were much safer because they did not have the feasibility of getting carried in the pocket. They were a bit more difficult to reach. At least they could not be taken to a remote corner of the house and could be talked over without other family members’ knowledge.
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