The Arrival of Gchat

Listening and talking became even easier in the 1680s, with the introduction of the sofa. Seating for two! For the first time in history, people could sit comfortably together indoors for long stretches — thereby making it easier for them to speak comfortably together for long stretches.

Here’s an interesting essay in N+1 about the evolution of conversation. It starts in the velvet-lined salons of the 17th century, the cradle of banter, and ends with Gchat, which we use all day, every day, to talk with “other people’s boyfriends,” until someone’s circle turns orange.

Is he really gone, or has the sneak downloaded that add-on that allows users to appear idle when they’re chatting? Like a shield, the round orange icon affords protection — to the person behind it, who is permitted to ignore any unwanted chat, and to the sender of the unwanted chat, who can tell herself, I guess he’s not there.

The green “available” circle is then compared to the green light Gatsby obsesses over, which is both hilarious and completely dead-on.