By: Indunil Madhusankha

It is a quite indisputable truism that modern man has begun to emerge victorious in diverse areas of human activities in a tremendously influential attempt of clamouring to enter the information age thereby exploring boundaries beyond the widening horizons of the world. Modern era can be judiciously hailed as unparalleled by any other age in the annals of the known history of mankind because of the unimaginably amazing progress witnessed by almost all spheres of activity. All this is due to the improvement of science and technology which is absolutely the driving force behind the high pedestal that the world exists on today. In a context like this, the concept of the ‘Global Village’ can be identified as a term which sums up the entire situation of all the trends in the present day world affairs and human developments. It has already become a pre–eminent source of discussion among the critics and social reformers, and also it is really prominent that this particular concept has stirred several interpretations in relation to it. In accordance with its modern connotations, ‘Global Village’ refers to the fact of all the miscellaneous economic, social and cultural systems of the world becoming interconnected with one another as a consequence of the far–flung influence of the highly advanced communication technology and that of exclusive multinational organizations. In short, the ‘Global Village’ can be defined as the circumstances of the emerging world scenario where the entire human race on earth will be supporting and zealously espousing one internationally established social structure and culture as a closely knit community.

Clearly, there is a number of significant factors which seem to clear the track for the fulfillment of the ‘Global Village’. The prodigious flowering of the realm of communication in today’s society has contributed immensely to create a ‘Global Village’ in the world. The devices such as the telephone, mobile phone, fax machine and the computer that have already caused a revolutionary change in the communication sector are scanning the world at jet speed with the majestic phenomenon known as the internet. Unlike in the past where the people had to strive for days or months to contact a person from another country, nowadays, we are blessed with the ability of communicating with somebody in the other corner of the world within a second’s moment through a telephone call, internet call, text message or an e mail. Information Technology has provided us with fast, unprecedented and even inconceivable facilities along with an exposure to a much upgraded communication experience. The tremendous progress of transportation too has been adding very much to the emergence of the ‘Global Village’ on our soil. The aero plane and other fast moving air vehicles have paved the way for us to reach heights which have never ever been even imagined. Furthermore, the ever flourishing economic status of the world and the increasing demand for knowledge have contributed enormously to the situation under concern. Today we live in a world where knowledge seems to have been converted to a ‘capital’. With the reinforcement of the sphere of information technology, man has received ample access to learn, explore and radically investigate into the divergent economic, political, social, historical, and cultural contexts throughout the breadth and width of the world. It is thus clear that the new trends in world affairs discussed above appear to have been contributing fabulously to the world becoming a ‘Global Village’ in times to come.

It is a universally acknowledged fact that everything in this world has both good and bad qualities unique to it. The condition is also the same with the ‘Global Village’. As already depicted, once the ‘Global Village’ becomes deep–seated in the society, the entire world will put faith in a one wholesome system of social and cultural values. Nevertheless, it is rather difficult to concede whether this concept means a synthesis of the miscellaneous cultures of the world as it is the case in the eyes of most critics. Instead, what has been occurring from the earliest days of the human civilization is the domination of the rich and the powerful over the poor and the weak or the “odds”. There is a certain possibility that this may prove to be the same with the ‘Global Village’ too because the wholesome culture to be practised by the entire world in the future might be that of the most forceful and influential nation or nations in the world, and not a mixture of all as we expect from the terminological implications of the very concept. Therefore, some critics are of the view that this phenomenon probably means an invasion of the strongest culture or cultures over the rest of the world. This consequence can never be condoned. Moreover, it is quite regrettable to note that the sparkling glory of material success and the outward beauty of the world that we live in today, have precipitated telling results that confront the society with a heap of degrading problems. Therefore, it seems inevitable that abominable social plagues such as the environmental pollution, moral deterioration, spread of corruption and crimes, uncontrolled rampage of fatal physical diseases and the mad rat race for materialistic gains might become acute in the looming world panorama.

But, as discussed earlier, there are many favourable effects of the ‘Global Village’ too. Concerned citizens and eminent critics are of the belief that the ‘Global Village’ will be of vital importance as a peace keeping effort because it has the power of bringing the whole human family into a close contact and agreement with one another. Then, it will lead to the disappearance, from the face of the earth, of such despicable and disastrous barriers as class discrimination, social segregation and other petty differences that generally stand as a buffer against the development of the world. Further, the human beings will be in a voyage of putting back the frontiers of knowledge and science with an even higher zeal under the flag of the ‘Global Village’ thus enhancing the comforts and conveniences of their living. Somehow, the ‘Global Village’ will appear because change is an untamed and unmitigated force of nature. Thus, the unflagging commitment from people of all walks of life with a great sense of responsibility will definitely render an immense support in uniting the human race into a mutually incompatible and endearing family and also in wiping out the disgusting impediments that we ourselves have created.

Written, July, 2009