a bridge to the 18th century Essay -- Free Essay Writer

Building a Bridge to the Eighteenth Neil Postman identifies himself as a neo-Luddite. What bothers Postman most is the fact that the greatinnovators of this time have no frame of referenceother than their own experience, and that experienceis only that of the 20th century. Advocates of trendssuch as information superhighways and economicglobalization appear to know nobody of history,philosophy and culture they live digitally in thehollow present.Postman assesses different ideas in each chapterChaper One A Bridge to the Eighteenth blowPostman heralds the accomplishments of personalitiesof the 18th Century, including Goethe, Voltaire,Rousseau, Diderot, Kant, Hume, Gibbon, Paine,Jefferson, Franklin, Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, andHaydn, among many others. Chapter Two ProgressPostman summarizes, The idea of progress is aproduct of the Enlightenment. The eighteenth centuryinvented it but it also criticized and doubted it andits limitations and pitfalls. Reason, when unaidedand untempered by poetic insight and human feeling,turns ugly and dangerous.Chapter Three TechnologyWhen assessing various technological advancements,Postman encourages the reader to be question, Whatis the problem to which this engineering science is asolution? Whose problem is it? Which people andinstitutions might be most ser...