DA Essay

Jennifer Donovan

ENG 3029

4/11/12

In the chatroom transcript that was provided it demonstrated how a girl was unfamiliar with new technology only because she was not exposed to it as a younger adult or was aware the dangers of what could happen. The new technology is computers. She not only discovered how to use photoshop and AOL but her computer class also taught her how to chat with other children her age. She later found it can be dangerous from talking over the internet. Her idea of having fun on the internet to meet new friends turned into an event that she remembers when brought up about an internet problem.  The situation eventually changed her views on computers for a small period of time and then as she became older learned to use them for homework and to talk to her friends.

The girl and the interviewer were comfortable with asking questions and sharing information of what had happened in the past given from the following quote, “S      so how do you think you felt about computers (when you were young- in grade school/middle school).” They sounded as if they were a guidance counselor and a student from her younger years. There sounds like a connection as if they were interviewed as a way to teach younger girls the dangers of what can happen online without even realizing it. Someone can get so caught up and just give their number out without even thinking of what can happen later in the future.

The girl thought it was just fun and games until she realized it can be serious as a young child who did not know the dangers at first, until she grew up as an adult that the internet is not that bad if you just be careful on who you talk to and what sites you go into.  As she states in the script (A), “I was careful, and then I was strict on my younger sister and my brothers using the computer.  I also hogged the computer because I liked talking to my friends…”  There are numerous strangers that one can contact with over the internet. The stranger that she met who she thought was her friend really turned out to be a guy who pretended to be a younger male just trying to make friends.

With talking over the internet, the girl became nervous and scared when the guy she was talking to called her on the phone. She never told her parents before about any of this happening until maybe she started college. Her younger sister became knowledgeable of the internet so she would be over her sisters shoulder and watching everything she did   and paid attention to who her younger sister was talking to over the internet.

In the discourse of the paper using “I” demonstrates her feelings and emotions of her event that occurred over the internet. (A)” I was in fifth grade I gave him my phone number when he called me I hung up I was so scared”. This statement demonstrates her feelings towards how she felt when the guy had called her and she was unsuspected of the situation. The situation illustrates a real life event that can happen to anyone. It shows that we cannot trust everyone who we talk to based on what they say or read on a profile.

The interviewee felt that she was the only girl who could have a situation like this happen to her.She felt as if she was violated and was very nervous and scared to see what could happen in the future with her brother and sister. She would be worried when her younger siblings went on the internet as she stated in this quote “But when my sister started going online I would check up on who she's talking to, I would look over, I would check the history, see what websites she went on”.

 She was so worried she made the internet just a place to check their homepages and their e-mail. Until she felt more comfortable in high school to learn more about computers she then started going on the sites to

An underlying truth in this interview is that the girl was really nervous about new modern technology. As an adult she trusts the internet to a certain extent and is more comfortable with it since she has been using it for quite some while. She is in control of what she does on the internet. She thinks that the internet is not for talking to other children of same age in chat rooms and how she feels that it is an unsafe thing for younger ages who are not aware of the dangers of the internet. There could be imposters on sites and chat rooms and even some who lie about their ages. As she states in the conversation from the interviewer to the respondent, “S:        so what did you and your friends do on the computer in a typical session - if you went over to your friend down the street.”

”A:            check our emails, check our home pages, see if people left us messages, go in chat rooms and chat with our friends, exchange pictures with people that lived in our area that was our age, which could be dangerous, cause they could be imposters, we really didn't care.” With this statement made it is implied that at that time she was not concerned with what happened at a young age until the situation occurred.

An element of speech that outlines the interviewee is the unsuccessfulness of adapting to computers. In the second chat, the pastor’s son feels that the internet was great and had a good time learning about what he can do and who he can talk to from all over. I believe that the girl is in control of what is happening in the conversation. She fears that as an individual that she could be taken advantage of and that the internet is not a good place for girls or young aged children to be a part of due to the fact that she was so nervous and scared of what could have happened to her over the internet. She gave her number without thinking and is paranoid that her younger sister may do the same. She is being over protective when in modern technology there are parent controls and what not that can be taken into consideration to prevent such events happening again.