SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 1 of 10
A couple of weeks ago, I received the visit of a Guatemalan friend who was
returning from a business trip in Uruguay. He brought me a Uruguayan newspaper
article titled: “Autismo Social un Fenómeno de Nuestro Tiempo - Harlem Shake y
la Aldea Global” (Social Autism a Phenomenon of Our Time - Harlem Shake and
the Global Village), written by Jorge Majfud.
The article captured my attention for three reasons: it uses the term Autism
applied to an entire society, it discusses digital communication as an enabler,
and it conveys the author’s rhetoric in a Luddite tone.
Majfud presents his apocalyptic argument about the Harlem Shake video
by using a combination of a Narrative and Dramatistic rhetorical analysis. He con-
cludes that such viral phenomenon is a portrait of our society’s inability to form
normal social relationships and its impairment of communication.
Using the narrative perspective, I will discuss how his one-sided argument
could have a negative impact on his audience by increasing the fear of em-
bracing technology. Also, I will explore an alternative interpretation of the Harlem
Shake Video phenomenon by reviewing: why humans communicate; how com-
munication has evolved and continues to do so; and how, instead of suffering
from autism, our society is simply constantly adapting to a more complex socio-
technological evolution.
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 2 of 10
DEFINING AUTISM
Before I start my analysis, I deem crucial to define the word Autism because it is
central to Majfud’s message. According to the Merriam-Webster Medical Diction-
ary, Autism is “a developmental disorder that... is recognized and diagnosed by
impairment of the ability to form normal social relationships, by impairment of the
ability to communicate with others...”
WHO IS JORGE MAJFUD?
Based on Majfud’s gloom and doom views of our society, expressed on the “Au-
tismo Social” newspaper article and his criticism of social networks and electronic
communications, which he calls “incomunicaciones electrónicas”, I pictured him
as an old guy resisting technological advances. To my surprise, he is a 44-year-
old assistant professor of Spanish at Jacksonville University. He is also an award-
winning writer. He was born in Montevideo, Uruguay and writes articles for several
magazines and newspapers around the world. Among his wealth of articles, he
wrote: “The Culture of Hate”, “The Imperfect Sex: Why is Sor Juana Not a Saint?”
and “Where we are Headed”. The latter starts with the following statement, “The
20th Century was a pessimistic century. So much so that even today no serious
thought is possible without a strong dose of bitterness.” (Where We Are Headed).
SOCIAL AUTISM AND THE HARLEM SHAKE ARTICLE
Jorge Majfud’s gloomy outlook is also found in his article “Harlem Shake y la Aldea
Global”. It was published in the printed edition of the Uruguayan newspaper “La
República” on March 16, 2013.
He argues that the isolation of the individuals of today’s society is syntag-
matic to the “Zombie Phenomenon” and consumerism. In his analysis, consum-
erism transformed the individual into a will-less being that consumes idly and is
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 3 of 10
consumed at the same. As a result, the individual has been robbed of his human
dignity and became an object of society by the automation of his mind.
Since people have become objects, the disposal mentality of consumerism
also applies to them. We dispose people, or the relationship with them, once they
have served their purpose. Higher rates of divorce, disrespect and abandonment
of the elder, fleeting friendships, replacing workers with automated machines,
objectification of women in advertisement, and children labor are just a few ex-
amples of the pervasive results of the disregard for human dignity in a consumerist
society.
Majfud states that the “Harlem Shake” video is not only a kairotic, funny,
and senseless “dance” that went viral, it is the parody of the autistic society that
we live in.
He starts by describing the setting, characters, events, relationships, and
the negative moral of the text. This video has two acts. On the first act there is one
individual that moves around dancing-like and the group of people around him
are doing non-related individual activities.
This behavior can be ob-
served also in live settings such
as restaurants, where a group
of friends or a family is having
dinner together and instead of
engaging in conversation, each
one is checking their cellphones.
Another example could be the
multitasking of employees in
the midst of a business meeting.
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 4 of 10
People read e-mails, send text messages, and/or update their Facebook status
while discussing business. This is today’s idea of “being together” or what Majfud
calls Social Autism.
Going back to the video, Majfud argues that the idea of alienation and
lack of communication is accentuated by the fact that the lone ranger usually
wears a hardhat or a mask. He also considers that the individual dance is a sign
of narcissism.
On the second act, everybody imitates the first one but add its own twist. All
the zombies mindlessly follow the leader and behave like him, but with a minor dif-
ference, because the Narcissus needs to feel different. To Majfud, this is “un acto
de masturbación colectiva” (an act of collective masturbation), the triumph of
the autistic, but not the overcoming of autism.
Majfud’s overview points out what is wrong with society: isolation, consum-
erism, zombie phenomenon, narcissism, voyeurism, etc. and implies that digital
media such as Facebook and YouTube are enablers of such despicable behaviors.
UNDERSTANDING THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF SOCIAL AND
COMMUNICATION EVOLUTION
The two major characteristics of autism are social and communication behav-
iors. Therefore, understanding the past, observing the present, and predicting the
future of social and communication systems is critical to conclude if humanity is
becoming autistic or evolving.
Like other primates, humans are social beings. Protection from harsh envi-
ronments and sharing of goods were two of the main reasons groups were formed
among humans. As basic needs were met with ease and predators were no lon-
ger a threat, we started to form more intricate relationships and stronger social
bonds (“Social Life”).
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According to the What does it mean to be human? website, humans be-
gan interacting with social groups located far from their own 130,000 years ago
and faraway trading started 40,000 years ago. These activities enriched their lives
and enable them to survive.
Human’s social evolution started 2.6 million years ago with the birth of tech-
nology, when we started using stone tools (“Human Evolution Timeline Interac-
tive”). We have gone from a nomad tribe to a global village and along the way
we have endured three dramatic shifts.
We stopped wandering the lands and settled down to farm and herd ani-
mals. This stage lasted around 12,000 years and ended with the Industrial Revolu-
tion. Farming and herding, as the main source of resources, were replaced by
mass production. The Industrial Revolution Age only lasted 150 years and gave in
to the Information Age.
The Information Age can be divided in two phases: the Information Phase,
the stage of “the knowledge worker... he who creates and manages informa-
tion, massaging it into intangible knowledge goods,” a good example of this is
Microsoft (Zelenka), and the Connection Phase, the stage of “the web worker...
he who creates and manages relationships across knowledge goods, hardware,
and people” (Zelenka), where Google is the poster child.
Communication is a key component of socialization. Therefore, social evo-
lution has always being accompanied by communication evolution. Rembrandt
Klopper, a professor at University of Kwazulu-Natal in South Africa, estates that
“forms of communication have periodically emerged to help humans cope with
ever increasing cultural complexification” (107).
Survival is the need that drives both, socialization (group formation) and
communication. Therefore, we always have to keep in mind that survival is the
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 6 of 10
driving force of communication. In Klopper’s words, “communication is a con-
tested meeting of minds, where fellow communicators cooperate, compete or
confront one another to clearly convey their intentions and contentions” (109).
Changes to the social struc-
tures coincide with new forms of
communication. Non-verbal, verbal
and graphical representations were
developed during the nomadic age
to help them stay on top of the food
chain.
Once nomads settled in and form com-
munities, political leaders emerged. The
power struggle among leaders gave
birth to new forms of communication. Dis-
course allowed leaders to compete with
other leaders and ensure power over their
followers. On this early stage of the pastoral age, knowledge was transmitted
orally. Later, written communication
emerged and allowed knowledge
to be recorded. The catalyst of the
knowledge boom was the invention
of the printing press by Gutenberg
which allowed people to “learn inde-
pendently and to communicate across time and space.” (Klopper 116)
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 7 of 10
Rapid urbanization and mass production of goods characterized the Indus-
trial Age. Before the Industrial Revolution, we consumed what we needed. The
mass production of the new era created an unbalanced market. The amount
of goods exceeded the needs of consum-
ers and the solution to that problem was to
change the buyer’s behavior. People no
longer would buy because they need, but
because they want. Companies resorted to
advertising to create the illusion that wants
are needs and to promote the “need” to re-
place instead of repair. Consumerism came to life and with it a new form of com-
munication was also born: electronic communications - telegraph, radio, and
television.
But to understand our present, the Information Age, Klopper goes back to
the beginning because “Our ancient nomadic souls are incongruent with pres-
ent-day sedentary existence... to communicate electronically is to move about,
explore, travel and visit people at new destinations” (121). This nomadic belief
system goes hand in hand with today’s mobile culture. Klopper points out that the
amount of travel metaphors that we use in our language is evidence of this yearn-
ing. For example, going online, surfing
the web, visiting websites, etc. The in-
vention of the personal computer cat-
apulted the sharing of knowledge and
independent learning, while the Inter-
net allowed us to explore of the whole
world from wherever we are (140).
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The latest technological inventions occurred at the same time as the roots
of what we knew as social structures and roles started to change. The stronghold
of our society, the family, is no longer a two-parent household; we now have:
single parent households, same-sex parent households, or no-family households
because being single is no longer a taboo. Private intimacy has been substitut-
ed by public sociability at a global scale. Men spend more time at home, while
women spend less time at home. Entertainment moved from public places to the
intimacy of home. (Wellman)
To understand better the phenomenon of the Harlem Shake, and the isolation
that Majfud declared as autistic behavior, we need to look ahead. From the spec-
trum of future technologies, I think Quantum Computing might hold the answer of
why we are isolating ourselves and displaying “abnormal” social behaviors.
“Quantum theory have demonstrated that matter simultaneously
has two modes of existence... everything in the universe, including
humans, is built up from particles that are located in space-time,
but which at the same time exists as waves that are not subject
to space-time constraints... So could
you be turned quantum? It all comes
down to information, or the flow of it.
This determines how you interact with
the world, and whether you can, for
example, be in two places at once. If
you want to be quantum you have to
isolate yourself from your surroundings
by making sure there is no way that
you leak information” (132-3)
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 9 of 10
CONCLUSION
I am sure Luddites have existed on each age of humanity’s evolution history. They
were ready to condemn the new and cling to the old, but their resistance to ad-
aptation did not stop progress; it only made the growing pains even more painful,
for them and their followers.
When I say that Majfud’s rhetoric has a Luddite tone, I am not negating the
value of his observations, but I do believe he is presenting a one-sided argument.
I agree with some of his ideas, especially those related to the harmful effects of
consumerism.
Majfud compared what he calls the autistic characteristics of dances such
as Breakdance and Harlem Shake to the narcissism-voyeurism of Facebook. In
a way, he was criticizing YouTube and Facebook for being the platform of such
unacceptable behaviors. Majfud delivered his message of digital media disdain
to a population characterized as technological averse (Latin American adults
between the ages of 45 and 65); his criticism may only increase his audience fear
of technology and resistance to embrace the new Communication Era. Feeding
fears does not help, it only hinders adaptation. Enabling understanding, in the
other hand, sets people free to explore and make educated decisions.
We are witnessing and, at the same time, co-creating the new phase of hu-
man communication, which is being prompted by a reconfigured social structure
and the fast-paced technological advances.
The isolation of individuals, considered abnormal, based on today’s normal
social behavior standards, might be the preparation for us to become quantum
and the new standard for future generations.
SOCIAL AUTISM OR EVOLUTION? Page 10 of 10
WORKS CITED
“Human Evolution Timeline Interactive.” What does it mean to be human?
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, n.d. Web.
30 Mar. 2013.
Klopper, Rembrandt. “Future Communications: Mobile Communications,
Cybernetics, Neuro-Informatics and Beyond.” School of Information
Systems & Technology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban South Africa.
2005: 121-144. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.
--- “The Evolution of Human Communication from Nonverbal
Communication to Electronic Communications.” School of Information
Systems & Technology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban South Africa.
2005: 107-120. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.
Majfud, Jorge. “Harlem Shake y la Aldea Global.” La República.
16 Mar. 2013. Print.
---“Where We Are Headed.” MRZine. 19 Dec. 2006. Web. 18 Apr. 2013
“Social Life.” What does it mean to be human? Smithsonian National Museum
of Natural History, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2013.
Wellman, Barry. “The Network Community. An Introduction to Networks in
the Global Village.” Computing in the Humanities and Social Sciences
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto, n.d. Web. 30 Mar.
2013.
Zelenka, Anne. “From The Information Age To The Connected Age.” Gigaom,
6 Oct. 2007. Web. 30 Mar. 2013