Has the World Become Dirtier, or Have We Become More Aware? By Gouya Roshan

Has the World Become Dirtier, or Have We Become More Aware?

Sometimes we feel that the world has become more polluted, more ruthless, and more immoral than ever before. It only takes a shocking headline, a violent video, or a report about corruption and injustice to make us feel that humanity is withering. But is today’s world truly darker than the past, or have the veils simply been lifted?

A look at history shows that violence, war, slavery, discrimination, and injustice are nothing new. We only need to turn the pages of history: from wars between empires to genocides, from the Inquisition to ethnic massacres. Tragedies such as the Al‑Anfal Campaign have also been documented. The world has always carried the potential for darkness.

So why do we feel it is “dirtier” today? The answer may lie in information. We live in an age when an event from the most remote corner of the world appears on our smartphone screens within seconds. Social media, independent media, and citizen journalists reveal realities that were once censored or never seen. What has changed is not human nature, but the speed and scope of our awareness.

In the past, many tragedies occurred in silence. Victims remained unheard, and official narratives concealed the truth. Today, however, an image of a child beneath rubble or a video of a humiliating act can shake the global conscience. This awareness, though painful, is a sign of awakening.

On the other hand, in some societies, social shame and respect for human privacy remain more prominent. In certain cultures, honor and collective conscience act as barriers against complete moral collapse. Yet even there, when the light of information shines, we see that humans remain the same—capable of both good and evil.

Perhaps the problem is that we carry the “illusion of a pure past.” We romanticize history because we are less aware of its ugliness. The truth is that the world has always been a mixture of light and darkness. The difference today is that darkness is harder to conceal.

If the world has always been this way, then we have a choice: we can either grow numb to ugliness, or, by recognizing it, do our part to make the world brighter. Information can exhaust us, but it can also keep our conscience awake. Perhaps the world has not become dirtier; perhaps we have simply opened our eyes wider. And that, however painful, may be a sign of human growth.