Some people think individuals are more and more dependent on each other. Some people think individuals are more and more independent. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Since the Enlightenment,

individuals

have been portrayed in public media as beings that continuously intensify their

independence

.

This

impression seems so solid that nothing can shake it.

Nonetheless

, I believe

this

kind of

independence

is an artificial illusion, which, in fact, is highly reliant on

individuals

' reciprocal dependence.

To begin

with, people's dependence on each other now does not manifest itself in the form of immediate cooperation. Rather, it is embodied in the reliance on the products of cooperation, which is precisely why the illusion of

independence

has gradually gathered strength.

For instance

, we now do not ask for help from strangers when we get lost in a strange city.

Instead

, we turn to our iPhones for guidance, which can mislead us into believing that we are more independent.

However

, without the cell phone and GPS, which are undoubtedly the products of cooperation, we could not achieve

this

kind of '

independence

.'

Moreover

, I am not suggesting that we have not made any progress in

independence

compared to before.

For example

, there was a long period in both the West and the East when ordinary people were dismissed as merely the possessions of lords, and women were degraded as only the appendages of men. The disappearance of these situations has powerfully demonstrated that

individuals

have indeed become more independent. In summary, I acknowledge that

individuals

'

independence

has been significantly strengthened over the

last

two centuries.

However

, we should not exaggerate the extent of

this

independence

and thereby ignore the increasingly strong bonds among people.