My feeble attempt to muse upon Mr. Modesitt’s questions posed in his blog post today entitled ‘The Failure of Imagination.’
Specifically, in his closing paragraph, the question:
“The immediate question is to what degree the proliferation of graphic everything minimizes the development of imagination. And what are the ramifications for the future of both society and culture?”
Is our obsession with gadgets and glitz impeding or ability to excel in the hard sciences? Where are the young up and coming visionary innovative scientists and inventors? Lost in a maze of mindless virtual mayhem? Distracted and disillusioned from the implacable mountain of hard work and study they must climb before great achievements are realized.
I too lament the decline of perception and a sharp increase in instant gratification; easy answers, quick fixes. And at least half of my offspring may eventually contribute to the ‘problem’ of faster, flashier graphic violence as an aspiring artist hurtling toward the gaming industry galaxy.
I’ve thus far avoided the allure of today’s graphically bloated games. I’m an old school drop-out of D&D who prefers a text based MMORPG exactly because my own mind is my first and best cinematic director.
I pose a ‘what if’ scenario, which most likely has been done before in science fiction. What if all of us became blind? How, doesn’t matter — could be disease or radiation or some other catastrophe. Would your imagination musculature be up to the challenge? Would we then strive towards ideals that benefit all since we would need to depend on and trust each other for survival?
Turn off the tube. Put down that game controller. Take a walk. Walk the dog (you both need exercise). Close your eyes. Or read a book.
Try a proactive response rather than a reactive reflection.