What makes people illogically cling to the past when the past in many aspects is totally irrelevant
in postmodern 21st century society? Why are some people fearful of modernity, change, and growth, oftentimes preferring to remain totally entrenched in the past much to their detriment?
Because they don't know how bad The Past was. They were children at the time. They remember things as fun and carefree.
A look at "clinging to the past" when it seems (or may actually be) irrelevant in any given "present" read more
Excellent premise you have presented, Lisa. Thanks for the hub.
Great question! I see this all the time as technology rapidly expands. I think nostalgia and contentment are two big factors in this equation. I find that fear is usually the underlying emotion attached to this so called "illogical" cling to the past.it seems sometimes easier to feel in control when we avoid "change", I think because change represents risk for so many of us. We go through so much in this life while trying to master our own lives! Why risk vulnerabilities and insecurities when we finally feel in control of our surroundings? This is when seeing a problem instead of an opportunity keeps us stubbornly put in our "past"!
You can filter the past. You do not have to think about wars, student riots, civil rights, etc. Instead you can drift into the "Happy Days" mentality, where things were simple and people talked face-to-face and boys wrote love letters to girlfriends, instead of sending a text. It is just a matter of ignoring the bad, the unpleasant and the boring and remembering only the good things.
The past is never irrelevant. It was the events of the past that shaped our world today, sometimes for the better and sometimes not. Remember the errors of the past, may prevent them from happening again.
There is nothing wrong with that as long as you remember that is only part of the past and sometimes the not-so-pleasant parts of our past do have to be recalled and put in perspective with what is happening today in our world, country, home and our personal lives.
Fear of change. The future is always (uncertain) therefore a known past is more easy to deal with than an unknown future.
For some people these are bad times. Ironically whatever period one is in the children of that period will consider it to be "the good ole days". Worrying about things we can't control causes stress.
Believe it or not some child or teenager today will be wishing they could go back to 2015 when they see 2035. It's always been that way! Maybe there's truth to the old adage of:
"Ignorance is bliss".
Long before we had 24 hour cable news shows, the Internet, and social media connecting us to the world around the clock we mostly focused on events taking place in our hometown or a nearby city. Life was simpler. People (automatically trusted) their government.
Most children and teens don't spend a lot of time following news and politics. Clearly it's a case of the less you know the better you feel.
You went to work, came home, had dinner, watched TV sitcoms or one's favorite drama, went to bed and repeated it the next day. On weekends you went shopping, did yard work, spent time outdoors doing various activities, and on Sunday you went to church and got prepared for the next week.
Human beings are creatures of habit. Changes make them uncomfortable. The future is all about change and evolving ideas.
my husband says i should have been living in the 60s i do not fit into today's society, i love the more innocent times.i think that people envy how simple things were back then and far less crazy then the world today
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