Doraemon - The God of Technology

Few days back when I entered home my nephew and niece were watching cartoon program on TV. Upon inquiring found it's a program named "Doraemon". Doraemon is a 21st century robot who is living with a family of three, Dad, Mom and a boy of adolescent age 'Nobita'. Doraemon is equipped with a pouch like pocket on belly more like kangaroo, which is the store room for technological gadgets, can easily be taken just putting hand inside and taking the gadget out. Each of these technological gadgets is itself a story, can take you in future, in past, change your face, and make money and everything you can imagine. The one having all these gadgets just blink of eye away is GOD of technology. Not only this, as God of certain theology sees things from a certain lens so is the God of technology, seeing solution to every problems from the lens of technology. Every episode revolves around very theme of problem-to-solution. Now that is interesting to see that most of the problems faced by Nobita are actually like the ones faced by children in real life, e.g. shortage of pocket money, temptation caused by friend's toy, apathy towards studies so on so forth. Nobita as he living with Doraemon has a kind of immediate access to the technological gadget, which are ought to be the solutions to the problems mentioned prior. Whenever he faces problem tempted and emotionally provoked rushes to Doraemon and ask him for help. God who himself is creation of technology can/provides only technological solutions.This cartoon program unconsciously implants false assumptions about technology, of which three are identified in this article.

Technology: solution to every problem

Whenever a problem is encountered what solution Doraemon has to provide is technological. This creates the first assumption that technology is the only and absolute solution to every problem. After seeing some of the episodes one can easily believe on technology to be the only saviour of humanity and human race. Whereas this not necessarily true as many of the problems being faced in real life are actually the creation of technology. Being a student of environment I can give you examples out of my own field. Increasing co2 in atmosphere, deteriorated soils, polluted water, polluted air and threatened biodiversity of whole planet directly/indirectly are attributed to immense advancement in the field of technology by human race. The abstraction of technology has caused deterioration of primitive societies and is finally threatening the survival of humanity on this planet. These solution are ought to be conjured through a thin air by Gods sitting somewhere in big corporations deciding the fate, hiding the negative aspects and deliberately showing it the ultimate option left. Children are need to told how primitive societies developed sustainable technologies which were regulated by societies themselves. People were well aware of negativity attached with it, sometimes prohibited by social taboos. Most important, it wasn't replacement to human relations infect a source of strengthening. The dire consequence of today's abstract technology is the disintegration of relationship from human-to-human and human-to-nature.

Privileged citizen:

Whenever Nobita uses a gadget, he feels infect deliberately shown one step ahead of his friends. This is the second assumption that if you are accompanied by a certain technology you will be ahead of the others. This assumption creates a mind-set to adopt new technology at first hand and feel privileged. No child would like to be in the left overs so adopting whatever comes with eagerness and enthusiasm. This idea is entirely contrary to the real world fact that it's not the users privileged but the creators. Infect the users become dependent on creator and privileged ones use it to exploit the consumer of technology. Every new technology is shown as mesmerising invention that once you ride this trade mill there is no way to get off. While you master the use of certain technological invention the newer version of it arrives. Through speculation and perceived obsolescence you are left desperate with utmost desire to acquire the newer version and this goes on. Those who created certain technology don't want you to master it because if this is so who will be the customer for solution or to buy that technology again and again or to buy newer one?

Obscuring the negative effect of neutral:

Third assumption is the worst one. Which goes like this, whenever Nobita is handed over a gadget, Doraemon with polite words tells him about the limitations and the negative effects of it but at that moment Nobita is so enthusiastic about the positive effects that he merely listens to these words. In reality creators are not kind enough like Doraemon to even apprise you about the negative effects of it. More often Nobita hasn't paid any attention to wise words of God so he is struck into a new problem. He again approaches to God of technology and who once again provides him the solution which yet again is technological. This is the trade mill of technology that technology who created the problem is again presented as a solution but it is shown that it's not technology but Nobita's behaviour, cause of problem. And if Nobita have used it in right way or for the right reason problem wouldn't have stimulated.This creates the assumption that actually technology is something neutral without any negative repercussions but it's the user who is responsible for these unwanted consequences. By this way debate that who is to held accountable for negative effects can easily deceived. The consumer is left thinking that it's him responsible for negative results so that he again starts the process of mastering it with same enthusiasm.All this worshipping like unconscious praising of technology is followed by commercials, gadgets to be consumed or real technologies contemporarily available in market. The commercials that I noted were of computer tablets to provide you with hundreds of applications so that you can spent you free time on them which was previously wasted while talking to parents, grandparents and friends, chocolate flavour powders, technology to make you grow tall quickly what you will do after growing isn't told, biscuits to make to healthier and toothpaste so that your yellow creepy teeth can shine like bright starts.How successful these cartoons are in their propaganda, of creating an image of technology as God, I realised it after talking to some of the children, nearly for all of them the fascination was Doraemon's gadgets. This left me thinking how abruptly cartoons and media is changing children's mind set about technology from a luxury to necessity to be the saviour.Doraemon