Getting into these sorts of discussions with family members – beers or no beers – happens quite frequently. With regards to the concept of the Cartesian split, I am reminded of my father’s reference to Gen Xers as the “Web MD” generation. We live in a time where scientific research has been conducted to “diagnose” any perceived abnormality in human function along with the subsequent development of corrective means. In short – there’s a pill for every ill. Putting aside the obvious financial incentives for the pharmaceutical industry, the compounding nature of man’s desire to normalize and standardize the functions of the body is worth examining on a psychological level.
The phrase “Web MD generation” implies a chicken-or-the-egg sort of scenario. With individuals being given new tools to essentially self-diagnose themselves, the medical professional seems to be loosing authority. When you have internet databases virtually explaining how you should feel if you have a certain medical condition, these lists of symptoms can tend to manifest themselves almost subconsciously. Additionally, sites like Web MD allow a user to click through a long list of physical symptoms and after being cross-referenced with a database, the user will be presented with a list of potential maladies. This reminds me of Latour’s description of the pedocomparator and how we remove each symptom (i.e. soil sample) from the body (the earth) and it becomes a signifier of a much greater characteristic of the body as a whole. When we combine these symptoms into something like a database – or grid in the case of the pedocomparator – we are able to re-order and re-evaluate processes of the body as merely parts of a greater whole. But we are seeing more and more of a “my A hurts and my B hurts” which is treated by taking 200mg of X twice a day and 500mg of Y just before bed. Much like the dried plant samples lain out on the table, there are connections and patterns that may exist naturally but are far less apparent when observing the body (an environment/eco-system all its own) as it functions holistically.
I find your comparison of WebMD with the pedocomparator very interesting. You are right; consumers using WebMD are trying to find their right shade of brown based off a set database. But from the moment a name has been assigned to the condition: whether it be associating soil samples with the tag C3 (grayish-brown); or diagnosing oneself with a scientifically approved condition, it seems as if nature complete separates itself from nurture. The soil sample is no longer considered a part of the larger world, but as C3; the symptom is reduced as a malfunctioning part of the whole body. I believe that this is a double-edged sword. As much as databases give us direction, they also narrow our focus, forgetting the potential of the mind to heal ourselves of our body’s ailments.
ReplyDeleteI have a close family member who embodies what you talked about with the WebMD generation. I absolutely agree that having this sort of access creates problems that weren't there before. It begs the question of whether or not humanity is simply creating diseases and maladies to fit things they want fixed? After all, before we had a word for apotemnophelia what was it? I think that people let they're body get the best of them. Any time there is a slight hiccup in how they run they assume that something has gone horribly wrong and that they need medication. A system as complex as the human body has to have some oddities now and then.
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