Nella società dell'accelerazione, rallenta! | Martina Radicchio | TEDxLakeComo
Translator: Giorgia Righetto Reviewer: Michele Gianella Do you run because you're in a hurry, or because you don't know how to stop anymore? I'm asking because, by now, it seems that running is the automatic answer to life. Now, I'm not exactly a runner: but in the race against time, I'm a champion. I hate traffic lights, TV show theme songs, people who walk too slowly and voice messages that are too long. In short: I, like some of you, live on a treadmill. The point is, I can't remember when I got on it. To give us an answer, however, we can start from technology, the companion of our day, which has been very good at reducing the time needed to do anything. We have freed ourselves from traveling by ship, from letters, from hand washing; and to talk to each other, just a click is enough. But let's also think about what happened on the platforms, because since May 2021, we can listen to voice messages in 1.5 or 2x: and just over a year ago, we can also accelerate Instagram reels, which were already born as a short video model. In short, the clues are all there: but be careful, because it's not like this technology is raining out of nowhere. It is designed within a culture that, in itself, is in love with fast life. Fast food, speed dating, power naps, TikTok trends, and songs that last a week, and then who remembers them the most? Perhaps, I have noticed it only now: but in 2004, a German sociologist, whose name is Hartmut Rosa, was the first to theorize the concept of 'Beschleunigung gesellschaft', that is, 'acceleration society'. What is it? It's us! That is, a society that lives all its aspects keeping its foot on the accelerator. We do it because acceleration is a key process of modernity. The point is that it has also become the invisible compass of our daily lives. Let's face it: if you stop, you're lazy. I mean, how can you not feel guilty? Everyone knows that, in life, whoever goes straight, fast, without wasting time wins. In short, we just need to look at a person's agenda to decide if that person has value, or not. But beyond our relationships, under acceleration is, perhaps, the answer to the oldest problem ever, that is, the finiteness of life. We live twice as fast because that doubles our life experience, doubles the things we can do, the places we can visit. But there is a paradox! Because instead of being a superpower, this acceleration is perceived by the human being as a prison. In short, going back to the initial idea of the treadmill, it's as if I could no longer go down, only run. But it's a hungry race, and Hartmut Rosa tells us: the acceleration society lives in a paradoxical famine of time. Would you like to give it a try? For 15 seconds, we pause. Here we go: I don't know how many of you started to count mentally, or peeked at the phone. However, if only 15 seconds of nothing created discomfort for any of you, I would say that it is a big problem. What then, stopping like we did now, in a day, is it really a waste of time? Think about it: give yourself an answer, you don't have to tell me. However, I'll tell you one thing anyway: let's calm down. Let's calm down not because there aren't urgent things to do: those are there. But to understand, even before we run, where we want to go. Let's calm down not because it's fashionable, but because it's a matter of survival. Then, if you want to move to the Tibetan mountains and change your identity, go ahead: after all, you are very free, aren't you? But in the end, a person's life, in Italy, lasts [on average] 2 billion, 650 million, 838,400 seconds. You choose, at what speed to experience them. (Applause)