The television show Seinfeld is one of my favorite shows that I can watch over ad over again. The fact that the show is based in New York not only makes me love the show even more but makes it close to my heart. The iconic diner that the characters in the show are always visiting is located in New York on 112th and Broadway. The fact that this diner is located in New York is something that is so cool to me. In the show, the diner is a place where Elaine, Kramer, Jerry and George meet up regularly to talk and discuss the dramatic things that are always going on in their lives. They bring their dates and friends there to talk and hangout whenever they free time. It is a comfortable place that the characters who have such hectic lives take a minute to sit, relax and enjoy each other’s company.
Seinfeld began playing in 1989. The diner that was a focal point of the show since 1989 is still up and running now in 2017. New York City has changed drastically since 1989, but that one diner that was open so long ago continues to open its doors today. The physical structure has remained the same all of these years but other aspects of the city have sadly changed. In the show, the New York City streets were always filled with people walking together or having lunch together whenever they could, engaging in conversation. I feel that now, New York City has changed to lose some of its sense of community. Many people walk the streets with earphones in their ears, not hearing other people around them or talking to anyone. Everyone is in such a hurry all the time and no one ever takes the time out of their day to enjoy their journey to or from their destination. For example, people used to take the time out of their day to get coffee and spend time with one another but now if someone is taking too long to order their coffee in the morning, we become ridiculously impatient and upset. I feel like this small change in people being more involved with their own needs is reflecting upon our community as a whole. By not engaging with each other more on a daily basis, we then tend to care more about ourselves in national issues as well. It is causing us to be a less accepting and empathetic community than we used to be.
So many things in New York City have physically remained the same such as buildings, train stations and parks. But at the same time, New York has changed and lost some its core values not only physically such as the destruction of Five Points, but in how our citizens interact with each other. We have become a more individualistic society that increasingly relies less and less on each other and focuses more on our own success. This is one of the largest and most disheartening ways that New York has changed over the years. I feel that this is a simple thing to fix however, it just takes a little less focus on ourselves and more on the world around us.
