128 Today's people
are friendlier than the people in the past.
Over the past few decades, friendliness has
become a much more important element in having a good social life. So, it has
been argued whether today’s people are friendlier than the people in the past.
Some people might say that people in the past were much friendlier than people
today; others might disagree with this statement. However, I am deeply convinced that today’s people are much friendlier
than the people in the past. Actually, I have a couple of good reasons to
support my assertion and will explain and develop them in the next following
paragraphs below.
First and foremost,
today’s people are friendlier than those of the past because various kinds of technological
mediums, such as television or social media, have made them familiar to
diversity. In other words, stereotypes have eased, and most
people are now more comfortable with people who stand out. In the past, many
people were unfamiliar with different cultures or foreign people, so they were
less friendly to a wide variety of people. Although
some people might say that the people in the past were much friendlier because
they counted on each other more than people do today, such people only relied
on particular friends or neighbors who shared the same culture and not a wide
diversity of people. To give an example of this, an American drama-series
called ‘Gilmore Girls’ depicts this. In the film, there’s an extremely small
town in New York, 1980, and it’s hard to meet new people there. The townspeople
have been born there and known each of their neighbors like their brothers and
sisters. So, they are always very friendly and supportive to each other.
However, when new people from other countries or towns move in, people are not
so friendly to them. This is because they are unfamiliar to people who are
strange and different from their point of view. However, today, society has
become very familiar with diverse cultures. Many Asians are living in Europe
and America without any big problems, and Europeans and Americans are living in
Asian countries very well. Stereotypic thoughts are at ease, and this has made
society much friendlier and more comfortable as a whole. So, it is easy to
believe that today’s people are friendlier than those of the past.
Furthermore, today’s
people are friendlier than the people were in the past because their
reputations are too exposed on Internet media. People today are
living in a camera, always being watched. There is no privacy, especially for
public figures such as politicians, celebrities and sportspeople. Even
individuals need to watch what they say on the Internet, in order to have a
secure social life. Social media today are preventing everyone from being
disrespectful to others. Even though
some people might insist that today’s people have less genuinity in their
friendliness due to the great exposure from the media than people of the past,
today’s people have more friendly and strict manners than those of the past.
To give an example of this, about 20 years ago, a music star accidentally
exposed her bad personality on television. She wasn’t aware that the cameras
were on, so she treated her assistants very badly. She said a lot of mean stuff
to her helpers who managed her wardrobe and makeup. At that time, it wasn’t a
big deal because people didn’t expect a lot of friendliness. However, the video
became viral again today. Due to so many mistakes, some celebrities lost their
career in a blink of an eye. So, today, public figures strictly keep basic
manners because they are too exposed on the Internet. Even when social media were
not very common, many individuals wrote a lot of mean words and private stories
on the Internet, thoughtlessly. However, such Internet history is still
remaining today and is keeping such individuals in a tight spot. This is
preventing many people in this world from disrespecting others. So, it is
definitely obvious that today’s people are friendlier than those of the past.