Name three changes in our culture that would surprise someone from the past

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I enjoy period films. I often wonder how someone from the 17th, 18th, or 19th century would react to the present day. There are no right or wrong answers. Have fun imagining.

My three changes are below.

1.) The end of slavery and the rise of Civil Rights and Gender Rights Movements.

2). The end of monarchy and aristocracy in many countries.

3.) The reality of a post-Christian society and the breakdown of morality.
 
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On a less heavy note: 1) Everyone staring at phones and never talking to strangers. 2) Internet, gaming, Reddit culture in general. 3) Inflation? Is that culture? 🙂
 
I saw a YouTube clip where this man was in prison for like 40 years. He saw people talking to themselves and realized they were using hands free phone sets. Hilarious!😁
 
That’s culture. I am curious about the heavy things you think would surprise them.
 
Hm. Honestly most of what I can think of fits inside of what you already said, especially 3).

The one thing I would add is the shear amount of mindless entertainment available and the extent to which people consume it. Lumped in with that is the extent to which technology (dishwashers, tractors, lawnmowers, cars) has reduced how much work we do, making us extremely blessed, but somehow still unhappy and ungrateful.

The rates of suicide, depression, and anxiety would be perplexing indeed I would imagine, given all we have today.

Edited to add a second idea I just had. The vast availability of education, even to lower class individuals. Especially college education. For most of human history that sort of education would be unthinkable unless you’re royalty. In the last few centuries it would’ve been less restrictive, but still quite rare and quite class-restrictive.
 
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The awesomeness of our means of transportation (across the ocean in six hours! Across a continent in three days overland!! Summer fruits in winter, from overseas!!!), coupled with an unprecedented level of physical unfitness, due to lack of movement of one’s own body.

ICXC NIKA
 
  1. How so many are rejecting God for idolatry.
  2. Instead of making them stronger, how autonomy/wealth has divided families/neighbors physically, spiritually and emotionally. (Lonely Mothers/people)
  3. The resurgence of [mass] yellow journalism.
On the lighter side; health, travel and microwaves.
 
The prevalence of black-and-white thinking.

How lonely and isolated we are.

Children not playing outdoors anymore.
 
All of these answers are so good!

The first change I thought of is the acceptance of homosexuality as normal and beautiful, even by most Christian churches, and the presence of homosexuals who are open and public and very vocal about their sexual orientation. This would include the “Boys Towns” that are found in many cities.

The next thing I thought of is how many people are overweight or fat or morbidly obese today. Food is so easy to acquire and consume nowadays–no more butchering the hog and using every bit of it (as described in Little House in the Big Woods!).

The third thing is an American thing–the dependence on cars for almost all transportation, except for the times we use planes for long-distance trips. Trains are still around, but not used as transportation by passengers (except in the big cities for commuting), and buses are used by some people for long-distance travel, but most of drive from place to place. As for horses–only in the Amish country and out in the rural areas especially in the West and the mountains.
 
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chessnerd321 said:
The rates of suicide, depression, and anxiety would be perplexing indeed I would imagine, given all we have today.
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I am not sure if it’s the rate that would surprise people, or the fact that they’re discussed openly in the way they are now. Remember that we’ve undergone so much change in how we acknowledge and deal with such things. There used to be immense pressure to keep such things to yourself. And from what I understand it was common to frame deaths as accidental if at all possible, and to keep the cause of death under wraps if not.

The whole concept of psychiatric illness, outside of obvious cases with delusional or psychotic symptoms, is very modern. Many of our ancestors would likely be quite surprised at seeing depression or anxiety treated as disorders and not simply character flaws. You can see this development well with PTSD - WWI was when we were really first starting to come up with the idea that there was some sort of medical issue and not cowardice, and even at that point in time many were skeptical that the soldiers were not simply malingering.
 
The tech, of course.

The extended childhood/adolescence.

No fault divorce.
 
To further address one of my three; the progress of women would astound our ancestors. The widespread use of contraception, legal abortion, and the separation of sex from procreation would definitely shock them. On a positive note, they would be amazed at medical advances, especially in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. For centuries, people dreaded Small Pox. It changed the future of many nations. To know it’s now extinct. Likewise, we finally understand how to treat and cure the age old dreaded “Consumption” (Tuberculosis). To know it was contagious the whole time would greatly sadden them at how many lives might have been saved with quarantine measures.
 
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I have, more than once, wondered what someone from say the 1600s or so would think about automobiles.

I think most of us cannot imagine a world that had no television or phones.

Electricity, giving light to the darkness and extra useable hours to the day.
 
glencor63 said:
1.) The end of slavery and the rise of Civil Rights and Gender Rights Movements.

2). The end of monarchy and aristocracy in many countries.

3.) The reality of a post-Christian society and the breakdown of morality.
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Slavery was banned in most, if not all Europe in the time period you suggest. There would be no surprise the ban was extended.
People were aware prostitutes used birth control. They would be surprised that it’s use is now mainstream.
Gender issues have grown and receded on popularity, in different cultures. They might be surprised but not shocked at today.

Re technology, they might be able to see most advances as extrapolation of existing breathtaking(!) developments on their lifetime. Except for computers.

Atheism was nothing new to them. What is new is that millions of isolated village atheists have organized around the world, the religion of secular humanism.
 
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The Transatlantic slave trade did not end, until the first half of the 19th century. Slavery itself persisted until the 1860s in the United States and the 1880s in Brazil. Slavery in the form of serfdom lasted until 1917 in Russia.
 
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Even the poor among us live as royalty.

We have enough food to be fat.
We have transportation to take us vast distances.
Our living space can be whatever temperature we want.
We have ice any time.

And probably the greatest of achievements…pizza is delivered to your door.
 
Some more humorous stuff:
  1. The emphasis on hygiene. Not everyone smells terrible!
  2. Widespread refrigeration. Imagine eating meat that wasn’t salted, or drinking grape juice that hadn’t fermented!
  3. People drinking pee, also known as cheap beer.
vz71 said:
And probably the greatest of achievements…pizza is delivered to your door.
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Actually, I can imagine that one seeming normal…🤔
 
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Let’s get serious. From a spiritual standpoint, give me reaction to our time from a Christian ancestor.
 
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