Technology can be a very touchy subject when it comes to many people. This can be for a variety of reasons. One reason that people can feel apprehension towards technology is because they do not know how to properly use a device. A second reason is because the person trying to use the device may be an adult and may not be used to today's technology. In the interview between "Ch" and "M" these are demonstrated. In the first excerpt "M" seems to feel uncomfortable discussing his use of computers when "Ch" is asking him questions regarding them. In the second excerpt "M" seems to feel a bit more comfortable talking about computers with "Ch" because he has learned more about it. From the first excerpt to the second excerpt there are different language patterns that allow me to read how "M" is feeling towards "Ch" and the topic at hand, technology. I will use textual analysis in the two excerpts to demonstrate why adults may be concerned with computers and technology.
In both excerpts "Ch" is posing all of the questions and "M" is answering them. Right off the bat in excerpt one "Ch" asks "So in 2002, you were word processing, typing papers. But in that math class you didn't want to use that math program?" "M"s immediate response is "No." "M"s short and quick answer of a "No" demonstrates that major apprehension towards the topic of technology. Then, "M" proceeds to respond to "Ch" with mental verbs whenever asked a question regarding technology. The two mental verbs that "M" uses the most are "I guess" and "I think." For example, in excerpt one, "Ch" asks what his feelings towards technology are. "M" responds, "I guess thought that I couldn't do it, I didn't trust myself, I didn't trust the computer, I was afraid." Then, "Ch" asks what about himself that he could not trust. "M" responds, "I guess I didn't think that I needed to use a computer in that way." Also, "Ch" asks what about the computers that "M" did not trust. "M" responds, "I guess that putting all of my information in there, and trusting the computer to, you know, analyze it, the way that I could have done it myself." Once again when "Ch" asks "M" about why he could not relate computers to education, "M" responds with, "I guess I thought I could go through without - without having to do this." Lastly, in excerpt one, when "Ch" asks about why it seemed like something extra, "M" responds, "Yeah, and even though I guess I wasn't you know comprehending that this was supposed to make my life easier, it made it more difficult." These mental verbs that "M" continues to use, "I guess" and "I thought," are indicative to which "M" is still processing his thoughts while answering the questions.
In excerpt one there are also de-intensifiers that "M" uses that provide evidence that he is not comfortable using technology. "Ch" asks "M" why he did not want to learn how to use the programs on the computer. "M" responds, "Maybe I didn't relate the computer to education in the right way, that I didn't think it was necessary." "M" seemed to use the word "maybe," which made him seem helpless to the fact that he did not want to learn. Also in excerpt one, "M" indicates that he is not comfortable discussing technology when he keeps jumping around from present tense to past tense. For example, "M" says, "That I could do it, I guess I didn't think that I needed to use a computer in that way." "M" says that he could do it then in the same sentence says that he does not think that he needed computers. A second example of "M"s insecurity towards questions about technology is when he says, "Yeah, and even though I guess I wasn't you know comprehending that this was supposed to make my life easier, it made it more difficult." The fact that "M" continues to not keep one tense shows that he is apprehensive towards the subject at hand. "M"s uneasiness with computers is mostly demonstrated in excerpt one when he repeats "I guess" multiple times. "I guess," shows that "M" does not have a straight forward answer to "Ch"s questions.
In excerpt two "M" seems to feel more comfortable discussing technology and computers with "Ch." Right off the bat, "M"s response to how he felt about taking a computer class is much longer than any of his responses in excerpt one. In excerpt two, "M" continues to use many mental verbs, such as, I think and I guess. "Ch" asks "M" what he thinks it was that got him over his fear of technology. "M" responds, "Ahm, I guess what could happen, you know? You know, what could happen, you put your work in you press a button, and you just - what's going to happen?" Also, "Ch" asks if they helped him get help on the internet. "M" replies, "I think so." This proves that "M" is still processing the question while beginning to answer it. A major example of "M" changing tenses continuously is when he responds to the question, "How did things change when you bought a computer?" Throughout "M"s answer he continues to change from the present tense to the past tense and visa versa. As well as constantly changing tenses, "M" used the mental verb "I guess" in his response. These two factors together give excellent evidence that "M" is not fully comfortable discussing computers and technology.
Lastly, in excerpt two, "M" uses many intensifiers that provide evidence that he is unsure of certain things or or is very sure of certain things. "It was different, and ah, it was a fun experience because the teacher was very good, very willing to work with us." "M" stating that the teacher was "very" good and was "very" willing to work shows that he enjoyed the class. "Ah, well like where us word. I would type in Notepad, you know, and then maybe somebody showed me" "M" using the word "maybe" shows that he is not positive of what he learned when he used word.
From excerpt one to excerpt two, "M" demonstrates a consistent hesitancy when it comes to the topic of computers and technology. Even though "M" seems a bit more comfortable in excerpt two than he did in excerpt one, the uneasiness is still evident. "M"s repetition of the lines "I guess" and "I think" regarding every question about computers and technology proves that he is afraid of it. After carefully analyzing these two excerpts I can conclude that adults can not easily learn a new technology that they have no background knowledge about.
In excerpt one there are also de-intensifiers that "M" uses that provide evidence that he is not comfortable using technology. "Ch" asks "M" why he did not want to learn how to use the programs on the computer. "M" responds, "Maybe I didn't relate the computer to education in the right way, that I didn't think it was necessary." "M" seemed to use the word "maybe," which made him seem helpless to the fact that he did not want to learn. Also in excerpt one, "M" indicates that he is not comfortable discussing technology when he keeps jumping around from present tense to past tense. For example, "M" says, "That I could do it, I guess I didn't think that I needed to use a computer in that way." "M" says that he could do it then in the same sentence says that he does not think that he needed computers. A second example of "M"s insecurity towards questions about technology is when he says, "Yeah, and even though I guess I wasn't you know comprehending that this was supposed to make my life easier, it made it more difficult." The fact that "M" continues to not keep one tense shows that he is apprehensive towards the subject at hand. "M"s uneasiness with computers is mostly demonstrated in excerpt one when he repeats "I guess" multiple times. "I guess," shows that "M" does not have a straight forward answer to "Ch"s questions.
In excerpt two "M" seems to feel more comfortable discussing technology and computers with "Ch." Right off the bat, "M"s response to how he felt about taking a computer class is much longer than any of his responses in excerpt one. In excerpt two, "M" continues to use many mental verbs, such as, I think and I guess. "Ch" asks "M" what he thinks it was that got him over his fear of technology. "M" responds, "Ahm, I guess what could happen, you know? You know, what could happen, you put your work in you press a button, and you just - what's going to happen?" Also, "Ch" asks if they helped him get help on the internet. "M" replies, "I think so." This proves that "M" is still processing the question while beginning to answer it. A major example of "M" changing tenses continuously is when he responds to the question, "How did things change when you bought a computer?" Throughout "M"s answer he continues to change from the present tense to the past tense and visa versa. As well as constantly changing tenses, "M" used the mental verb "I guess" in his response. These two factors together give excellent evidence that "M" is not fully comfortable discussing computers and technology.
Lastly, in excerpt two, "M" uses many intensifiers that provide evidence that he is unsure of certain things or or is very sure of certain things. "It was different, and ah, it was a fun experience because the teacher was very good, very willing to work with us." "M" stating that the teacher was "very" good and was "very" willing to work shows that he enjoyed the class. "Ah, well like where us word. I would type in Notepad, you know, and then maybe somebody showed me" "M" using the word "maybe" shows that he is not positive of what he learned when he used word.
From excerpt one to excerpt two, "M" demonstrates a consistent hesitancy when it comes to the topic of computers and technology. Even though "M" seems a bit more comfortable in excerpt two than he did in excerpt one, the uneasiness is still evident. "M"s repetition of the lines "I guess" and "I think" regarding every question about computers and technology proves that he is afraid of it. After carefully analyzing these two excerpts I can conclude that adults can not easily learn a new technology that they have no background knowledge about.
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