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CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

Humanity and Technology Explored Through Poetry  
Taryn Bates 

Department of Sociology 
California State University, Los Angeles 

 
 
EXPLANATION OF SOCIOLOGICAL RELEVANCE 

A collection of five poetry pieces all featuring the social 
theory of interactionism through the ever-increasing hyperreality of 
digital technology influencing humanity; social identity is a main 
theme throughout all. 
 
 
Streaming does not directly reference any technological devices, 
using analogous wording describing a stream of water; this illustrates 
how natural it has become to use modern tech as part of daily norms.  
 
 
Can’t Connect Right Now wrestles with “the looking glass self” 
being influenced by external perceptions. 
 
 
No Data Connection explores “the I” & “the Me” of interactions with 
technological devices, playing with analogies of various features 
used both in and out of tech, such as how fingers are also known as 
digits.  
 
 
The Vast Nothingness of Space follows a journey of cutting off 
humanity – both personally and socially – in an act of distancing the 
self from all else to avoid role strain and role conflict through the 
technological advancement of space exploration as a metaphor. 
 
 
I Am Human essentially brings all the previous components together 
by focusing on the natural state of being human, putting a spin on 
roboticization of the modern world. The visual formatting of the 
piece is meant to resemble a spine.  
 
 



Creative Works | Poetry | Bates 133 
 

CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

Streaming 
A stream of sound & images  
Coursing like a powerful river  
Never-ending, flowing one into another  
 
Once it starts, it sweeps you away  
Following familiar but undefined paths  
Never questioning stepping into the stream  
Just going with the flow  
Mindlessly taking the course  
Numbing the senses  
Vaguely aware of the passing time  
 
Until you find yourself farther than you expected  
Disoriented and struggling to get back control  
Leaving, but knowing you’ll be back  
 
 
 

Can’t Connect Right Now 
The connection is unstable 
No strength in bandwidth 
The audio is cutting out 
The imagery fuzzy and frozen 
 
These time zones 
And packed schedules 
The distance prolonged 
By lack of conversation 
 
Priority of minutes 
Limited by plans 
Mismatched carriers 
Prevent any signals 
 
Am I still seen 
Even when not perceived 
Free to speak my truth 
If no one can hear me now? 
 
 



Creative Works | Poetry | Bates 134 
 

CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

No Data Connection  
I am left to my own devices 
Trying to establish a safe connection 
Stable, steady ~ a secure net 
Inter-dependent communication 
Information at my fingertips 
Digital era only opens options 
Overwhelming the senses 
Limited data capacity in an unlimited world 
Wide web entangling understanding 
Pages and pages to keep tabs on 
The stimulation keeps me Wired 
Less I lose the signal of affirmation 
Fidelity to society 
App-lying the expected tools 
Rules of conduct instructing 
To suffer no fools 
Agreeing without reading 
The terms of conditions 
The policy of privacy 
White noise in a stream of static 
Taken for granted 
When my access is gratified 
But woefully distressing 
When not found Online 
Prone to servicing my need for confirmation 
That I’m never truly alone 
 
 
 
 

The Vast Nothingness of Space 
I carved out my heart long ago 
Cleaved it from my chest 
Put my instincts on ice 
Locked them up, laid to rest 
 
Instead of using bandages 
I built an outer wall 
Sealing off infected areas 
Quarantining from all 



Creative Works | Poetry | Bates 135 
 

CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

A resolute mission developed 
Becoming a satellite 
Jettisoned out into space 
Spinning in never-ending night 
 
But then the deep ache came 
In the absence of the whole 
I longed for healthy living 
But my actions undermined that goal 
 
While my spirit was claimed redeemed 
My head pulled a heavy load 
Spinning from intellectual plates served 
From a diet of self-preservation mode 
 
Slabs of frozen meats applied 
To dull the swelling senses 
Trying to fill the emotional void 
While not fully letting down defenses 
 
The time was passed with fairy tales 
Surely I was a cursed victim in need 
Believing all the stories 
Awaiting a brave, heroic deed 
 
A taste of being understood 
Instilled a persistent craving 
Desire for deep connection 
Awakens hope I’m worth saving 
 
Looking for any signals of fulfillment 
Embedded in me since birth 
I hear my purpose calling 
Free falling back to Earth 
 
Overpowering destiny 
Real love is to be known 
Truly seen and heard, received 
Finally welcomed home  



Creative Works | Poetry | Bates 136 
 

CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

I Am Human 
I am Human 

Framed in bone 
Stoney support 

Standing tall yet fragile in its own way 
Grasping onto what life can give 

Sometimes breaking in the process 
But becoming stronger for it 

 
I am Human 

Streamed in blood 
Flooded with tears 

Sweating the small stuff 
Mingling into a concoction unique to this species 

A life juice of courage and persistence 
Of filling this existence with meaning 

 
I am Human 

Networked in nerves 
Serving a variety of sensations 

From pain to pleasure 
And a multitude in between 

Ending and beginning connected as one 
Increasing the experience ready to be had 

 
I am Human 

Covered in flesh 
Freshly encompassing all 

Though time will leave its marks 
Like the rings of a tree trunk 

Weathering changes while still growing 
A visible sign of a signature story 

 
I am Human 

Bone, Blood, Nerves, & Flesh 
Combined in the Physical 

Composed of the Emotional 
Corroborated in the Mental 

Creatively singular within the sameness 
That is Human 


	Humanity and Technology Explored Through Poetry - Taryn Bates



