My grandmother lived through the time of great depression and had to learn how to make her own items. When she was 11, her mother taught her how to use a treadle machine (the sewing machine with a pedal). She learned how to make her own clothes and then go on to make her family and children's clothing. It made life much easier and cheaper when she used it and she used to have a lot of fun sewing the clothes. Now however, she is much more out of practice and doesn't know how to use the most recent machines.
I think that this was a very useful technology in the scope of the class. Although its not like the printing press or typewriter, it was useful in her time, and transformed the way the generation thought about things. Material things were not as important. Homemade clothes were the staple. They saved money on clothes so they could have access to things like a telephone. I think that this relates to the scope of the class more so than it seems. The invention of better sewing technology made the necessary clothing cheaper. It then made more room in budgeting for the information technology that we discuss in class, so in a sense it had a huge impact on the information society.
I think it's really interesting that your grandma identified the sewing machine as the most important technology to her. As you mentioned, it's a technology in a less traditional sense but nonetheless still a technology that has transformed, made us more productive, and truly impacted our lives.
ReplyDeleteI really wish that I had older family members that were still around to discuss such "older" technologies because I think it offers a really unique perspective that sometimes we have a hard time seeing things from as millenials!
I think that your grandma's choice of the sewing machine is a real testament to the value that her generation puts on self reliance. It is interesting to see what individuals of her generation did in order to make ends meet during the depression.
ReplyDeleteMy grandma is also a huge sewer and to this day has a very difficult time throwing away clothing that can be patched or fixed. It is really interesting to see the lifelong impact that surviving through the great depression had on individuals.