Influencing the next generation

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Influencing the next generation
Introduction
Adam Gopnik’s essay “Bumping into Mr. Charles Ravioli” introduces us into the world
of children under the age of seven. The most predominant trait in these children is their ability to
create imaginary figures to mirror their social development. Olivia is a three-year-old girl, and
she already has her own friend, called Mr. Ravioli; who is about seven years old. At this tender
age, Olivia is already having a strained relationship with her human avatar friend. This shows
why Sherry Turkle in her book “Alone Together” should not be shocked when Anne, a college
student asks whether she can get a robot friend as a substitute for her boyfriend (Turkle 18). This
is because from a tender age, children are learning that technology is more reliable than what is
real and living. Olivia’s imaginary is a good stands to show just how children have become
conscious of this fact. Olivia seems to have the time to meet her imaginary friend Charlie
Ravioli, but up to today, she has only managed to bump into her friend. Even to a three-year-old
life is already too busy to have time to go the park with a friend. She is in need of a substitute.
This shows why Sherry Turkle’s has been forced to concede that we are all together but each of
seems to be alone. Real people are too busy to offer solutions for the loneliness that has been
created by busyness (Turkle 10). This is something that Sherry Turkle observed when she took
her daughter to the Darwin exhibition. At age fourteen, Turkle’s daughter preferred inanimate
tortoises than the real ones, which were at the exhibition. 
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Too busy to be together
The young generation is therefore finding out that human friends are less reliable than the
robotic simulations of friendship. They have therefore become less conscious about the
sentimental aspects of life, and all they are concerned about is reliability. Olivia may not have
experienced Mr. Ravioli in real life, but she is well aware that there are many Mr. Ravioli’s out
there. By looking at her parent’s life, she is already preparing herself to the life of bumping into
friends and grabbing lunch. This is because Olivia’s parents have found themselves in a situation
where they have over time put off friends and even neighbors because of their busyness. This is
more of having an artificial connection with people. In this, someone does not have to confide in
the friends they have or be vulnerable because everyone is supposed to be busy. Olivia is very
much alone though she actually has a friend who she talks about almost every time (Gupnik 3).
This kind of friendship fits into Turkel’s description of the kind of authenticity, when she
compares the current view on authenticity to the Victorian’s view of sex. In this, a friend is
depicted as someone you have accidental meetings, and one who cannot make time to develop
deeper relationships. It therefore follows that as the child grows, he/she finds it hard to draw
lines between what is real and what is fictional. Olivia’s experience is that friends are people you
bump into, not people you sit to have intimate chats. On the other hand, texts and e-mails are a
lot of work, and need immediate attention. Technology offers opportunities for people to avoid
social responsibility, and Turkle sees this as the reason why people spend time fidgeting with
their phones. 
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The relationship between Olivia and Ravioli is unauthentic and fits Turkle’s critique on
the book “Love and Sex”. Olivia’s story seems to affirm Turkle’s view that love is just not about
bumping into each other. It is more than hopping into a taxi together or sharing a meal. It takes
the approach that Adam Gopnik and his wife took when they heard about this strange friend that
their daughter was attracted to. Turkle ascertains that relationships are complex, but very
desirable. He compares good relationships to a candy store. And looking at Olivia’s imaginary
friendships, it is clear that Olivia wishes that her friend would have more time to spend with her,
and a less complicated schedule. Everyone is interested in having fruitful friendships, but most
are scared of the time they have to spent to make this friendships work, and therefore they keep
running away (David 17). The fact is this does not mean that they are emotionally satisfied or
content with their friendships. Gopnik’s essay shows just how risky it can be having human
friends. Looking at their daughter, Gopnik is concerned because the avatar friend that Olivia has
does not meet the expectations their expectations of what a friend should be.
Gopnik takes a look at the eighteenth and nineteenth century and clearly discovers that
even when people were pre-occupied with numerous constructions and the consuming tasks of
the industrial revolution age; they still had time to meet, they had time to get bored