ARE WE ENTERING A DARK AGE?

- Yes, we are!!!!

    The discourse on whether contemporary society is entering a new 'Dark Age' is one steeped in historical, philosophical, and sociological analysis. This intellectual exploration requires a deep dive into the very essence of what the medieval 'Dark Ages' signified, juxtaposed against the Enlightenment, and how these epochs compare to our current era.

Revisiting the 'Dark Ages' and the 'Enlightenment'

    The term 'Dark Ages' often evokes images of a world bereft of cultural and intellectual growth—a simplistic and unfair characterization. This era, more accurately seen through the lens of its nuanced complexities and underappreciated advancements, was not engulfed in intellectual darkness but was hindered by the selective spread of knowledge. This barrier was not merely physical, arising from widespread illiteracy and the scarcity of texts, but was deeply philosophical. Society viewed the natural world as unchangeable, and the capacity for profound thought as a scarce treasure.

    In contrast, the Enlightenment is frequently celebrated as the "antithesis" of the 'Dark Ages,' revered for its promotion of reason, rationality, and the broad dissemination of knowledge. Yet, this acclaim may be overly generous. The Enlightenment, in its efforts to democratize knowledge, might have inadvertently diluted the very essence of reason and scientific inquiry. This simplification of knowledge, designed to cater to the masses, risks reducing rationality to mere common sense, thereby losing its power to question and overturn entrenched norms.

But What Have Led Us to This Tragedy?

    Shifting from the contrast between the medieval 'Dark Ages' and the Enlightenment, our discussion now turns to an important question: Are we edging towards a new 'Dark Age' in our digital age? To answer this, we must delve into three key arguments that reveal stark parallels between the intellectual climate of the medieval period and the patterns unfolding in our contemporary, technology-dominated society.

1. Diminishing Understanding of Science and Reason: A salient feature of the original Dark Ages was the exclusivity of knowledge, confined to a clerical elite, beyond the grasp of the common populace. Today, while science and reason are widely promoted, there exists a paradoxical phenomenon where a significant portion of the populace, despite pledging allegiance to science, lacks a fundamental understanding of scientific principles. This superficial endorsement of science, devoid of deeper comprehension, echoes the medieval separation of advanced knowledge from the lay public. Furthermore, the rise of anti-scientific sentiments, as seen in climate change denial, flat earth theories, and evolution skepticism, mirrors the medieval era's skepticism towards scientific and rational inquiry.
2. The Pursuit of Spiritual Fulfillment Beyond Organized Religion: In the medieval period, spiritual and religious pursuits were deeply entwined with the intellectual life, often monopolized by religious institutions. In the present age, while traditional religious adherence has waned, there is a burgeoning quest for spiritual fulfillment through alternative means. This pursuit, often outside the bounds of organized religion, can be seen as a contemporary parallel to the medieval search for transcendence and meaning. The new 'spiritual' pursuits, ranging from secular philosophies to new-age beliefs, signify a diversification of existential quests akin to the religious explorations of the Dark Ages.
3. Inaccessibility of Advanced Knowledge to the Masses: A defining characteristic of the Dark Ages was the inaccessibility of advanced knowledge to the general populace, a condition not entirely dissimilar to our current situation. Despite the widespread availability of information, the actual depth of understanding and critical engagement with complex subjects remains limited to a select few. Ironically, the vast troves of information available in the digital age do not necessarily translate into widespread intellectual enlightenment. Instead, they often lead to information overload and superficial engagement, mirroring the medieval scenario where profound knowledge was confined to scholarly elites, with the masses remaining largely in intellectual darkness.

Evidence of the Encroaching 'Dark Ages'

    The analysis of these three reasons highlights parallels between modern society and the medieval 'Dark Ages,' especially in knowledge dissemination and intellectual engagement. This prompts us to reconsider what defines a 'Dark Age.' We must question if the digital age's information glut signifies enlightenment or heralds a new era of intellectual obscurity. I've personally found four philosophical characteristics indicating the onset of a new 'Dark Age'.

        Light On vs. Light Through Paradigm

    On the one hand, the medieval epoch, characterized by its 'Light Through' paradigm, is epitomized in the Gothic Cathedrals and illuminated manuscripts. These artifacts, bathed in the self-radiant, transcendent light of the sun through stained glass, symbolize, as McLuhan posits, a divine revelation descending from the heavens. This contrasts starkly with the Enlightenment's 'Light On' paradigm, heralded by the advent of the printing press. Here, the focus shifts dramatically from the self-luminous, spiritually imbued artifacts to the stark, black-and-white, Euclidean realm of the printed page. The tactile, multisensory engagement of the 'Light Through' approach gave way to a more abstract, isolated interaction with knowledge.

    On the other hand, the contemporary digital revolution marks a return to the 'Light Through' paradigm. Devices such as iPads, computers, and TVs are, in essence, self-radiant, echoing the participatory nature of medieval scribal culture. The electronic age revives this participatory element, blurring the lines between creator and consumer in the realm of information and knowledge.

   In medieval scholasticism, education was fundamentally dialogical. Lecturers would read manuscripts aloud, engaging students actively in translation, editing, and production. This contrasts with the post-Gutenberg era of the Enlightenment, where the emphasis on printed material encouraged private, silent reading – a hallmark of the 'Light On' paradigm. The digital age, however, has seen a reversion to the oral and dialogical, with the resurgence of seminars, group discussions, and interactive learning environments. This shift signifies a movement away from the visual, detached consumption of knowledge to a more communal, auditory, and participatory approach.

        Oral vs. Visual Dominance

    The oral paradigm, emblematic of the medieval 'Dark Ages,' is characterized by its immediacy and acoustic nature. It is a realm where the ear, the primary sensory organ of this era, perceives the world in a holistic, encompassing manner, thus creating a sense of acoustic space. This auditory domain is instantaneous and all-encompassing, fostering a mode of knowledge that is dynamic, participatory, and rooted in communal interaction. The spoken word, laden with tonality and emotional nuance, engages the listener in a direct, face-to-face manner, fostering a collective intellectual experience.

    Contrasting sharply with this is the visual paradigm ushered in by the printing press. This era's reliance on the abstract phonetic alphabet and the written word cultivates a mode of thought that is uniform, continuous, and linear. Such a paradigm engenders a specialist perspective, capable of action devoid of immediate, reactive engagement. The visual space, thus, becomes a detached, objective field, where knowledge is decontextualized from the immediacy of human interaction, fostering a sense of intellectual isolation and personal perspective.

    The contemporary digital age, however, signals a return to the oral paradigm. The dissolution of the Enlightenment's visual dominance is evident in the advent of impressionism and pointillism in art, which eschew traditional geometrical space in favor of a more fluid, self-radiant aesthetic. Similarly, electronic technology, with its pervasive and all-encompassing nature, disrupts the segmented and sectoralized visual space of the Enlightenment. It creates an acoustic space that is simultaneous, discontinuous, and enveloping, akin to the sensory experience of touch. This shift transforms the observer from a static, detached viewer to a mobile spectator, continuously navigating and synthesizing a barrage of disparate, yet interconnected, streams of information.

            Hemispheric Dominance Shift

    The scribal era, representing the medieval period, was predominantly influenced by right-hemispheric cognitive processes. This is reflected in the holistic and integrative nature of the period's intellectual endeavors. Texts, or 'textura,' derived from the Latin for 'tapestry,' were not merely vehicles for linear thought but were replete with radiant illustrations, rich textures, and tactile embellishments. These manuscripts, embodying a holistic, interconnected mode of knowledge, starkly contrast with the Enlightenment's more linear, analytic approach.

    The Enlightenment era, with the rise of the printing press, heralded a shift towards left-hemispheric dominance. This period was featured by fragmentation, analysis, and abstraction. Texts transformed into black-and-white, linear, and unembellished forms, reflecting a more analytical and detached mode of thought. The physical orientation of books – standing upright, showcasing their bindings – symbolizes this shift towards a more segmented and compartmentalized approach to knowledge.

    Interestingly, our modern age is witnessing a re-emergence of right-hemispheric dominance. Post-1990s, there has been a significant increase in books incorporating illustrations, indicating a movement away from the left hemisphere's word-focused ('logos') dominance to the right hemisphere's image and icon-centric ('logo') approach. This transition is further exemplified by replacing the pen, a tool favoring linear, left-hemispheric processes, with keyboards and mice that encourage a more holistic, right-hemispheric mode of interaction. Additionally, the internet promotes a non-linear, vertically oriented mode of information processing, aligning with right-hemispheric cognitive styles. This shift is also mirrored in the rising prevalence of dyslexia in the era of television and digital media, predominantly affecting males, suggesting a disruption in the traditionally linear, left-hemispheric cognitive processes. Furthermore, the revival of interest in goddess cults and fertility icons, previously relegated to obscurity in the typographic age, emphasizes this hemispheric transition.

         Generalism vs. Specialism

    The Enlightenment epoch, marked by its paradigm of radical self-discipline and stringent educational systems, fostered a culture of specialization. This era's educational institutions mandated conformity to mechanical activities, subjugating the body and mind to the rigidity of printed texts. Such a paradigm not only restrained intellectual diversity but also, paradoxically, led to the externalization of pent-up emotions through phenomena like nationalism and territorial conquest. The Enlightenment's focus on specialization engendered a compartmentalized intellectual landscape, where each individual was encouraged to cultivate expertise in a narrowly defined area.   

   As opposed to the Enlightenment's specialist approach to knowledge, our era dismantles these walls of specialization, giving rise to a global, interconnected acoustic and electronic milieu. This is manifested in the cyberbalkanization of social media, where tribal and personalized forms of expression and conflict emerge, challenging the Enlightenment's controlled, specialist-driven discourse. The electronic age, thus, marks a return to a more multidisciplinary and synthetic mode of intellectual engagement, reminiscent of the medieval 'Dark Ages.' In this era, intellectuals were not confined to narrow specializations but were rather encyclopedic in their pursuits, embracing various disciplines.

    To complicate the matter, the nature of the internet further amplifies this shift towards generalism. Its holistic structure fosters an environment where generalist and, at times, conspiratorial thinking gains prominence. This milieu encourages a broad, interconnected understanding of the world, starkly contrasting with the Enlightenment's compartmentalized knowledge systems. Such a trend, however, is not without its pitfalls. The potential for fragmentation within this generalist paradigm poses the risk of enabling authoritarian regimes, as the pervasive surveillance capabilities of the internet create uncritical recipients of information, easily manipulated on a grand scale.

Final Words

    In conclusion, comparing the contemporary digital era with the medieval 'Dark Ages' uncovers a worrying trend towards a new kind of intellectual illiteracy. This trend, marked by increased reliance on non-written communication, suggests a potential shift towards a state reminiscent of the 'Dark Ages.' Yet, today's intellectual elite continue to adhere to the literate traditions of the Enlightenment, even as they navigate a digital landscape.

    Unsurprisingly, this shift mainly affects the average citizens, steering them away from the literate norms central to historical intellectual discourse. It suggests a split in intellectual development paths, where the digital age's information democratization exists alongside a risk of reduced engagement with deep, analytical thought.

Thus, scholars, policymakers, and educators must be vigilant. We bear the crucial responsibility of ensuring that the digital era's benefits do not lead to a new 'Dark Age' of intellectual stagnation. Our aim should be to use this era's potential to promote a resurgence of knowledge, critical thinking, and enlightened discourse, building on the intellectual heritage of the past.