I have been asking myself ‘what is modernity?’ It is common to think of modernity in terms of technology. Modern people watch TV, drive cars, fly on airlines and use cellphones.
I don’t think that works as a usable conception of modernity.
In my experience a town in Maine, say Bangor, feels no more modern than Isfhan in Iran, Cochin in India, Sorez in Southern France or Puebla in Mexico. The social hierarchy in most towns in the world are rigid, pyramidal, unchanging over centuries and, to me, stultifying. The presence of modern technology does very little to change the daily life of the inhabitants.
On the other hand, many big cities, California and specifically Los Angeles are truly modern. The social hierarchy is nearly nonexistent, individuals lead self defined lives, with a great deal of flux in their activities over time and most importantly, their social networks are self made. These seem to be the defining qualities of modernity.
Am I way off base on this?