The Law of Retrieve
The video we viewed in class, Marshall McLuhan’s Wake, gave four laws that describe the rise and fall of technology. In particular, I'd like to focus on McLuhan's third law - the law of retrieve. This law states that when advanced technologies replace older technology, eventually the older technology will see a revival. I believe that this law has credibility to it. It is directly related to humanity, for we humans are not all about utility and convenience, and new technologies cater to both those concepts. This means, that older technologies, if they have some other qualities that a new technology does have, will continue to survive, or reappear, as long as humans find a benefit to it. For example, electricity has replaced dependence on oil lamps and candles, yet both these technologies are still demanded and bought. Candles for instance have a quality about them that electric lights don’t. Candles add ambiance and set moods, so they appeal to our emotional needs. They have been retrieved in our society today and now candles are re-marketed to us by being scented and given all sorts of designs. McLuhen’s Law of Retrieval will always hold true, no matter how useful our technologies can be to us, as long as there is something attractive in the older technology.
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