“Seeing Ourselves Through Technology” Notes

Summary:

• 3 distinct modes of self representation in digital media: written, visual, quantitative.
• Almost everything we do today is done online.
• Technology makes us see a reflection of who we are.
• Diary writing was important for many cultures in the past (helped them understand themselves).
• Blogs can compare to diaries from the past (both personal).
• Selfies are self portraits that we share with our friends and followers online, allowing them to see a version of ourselves that we want them to see.
• Quantitative can be numbers, lists, maps, and graphs.
• There are many different ways people choose to track their habits.
• Quantitative self representation is seen everywhere in the world today (Fitbit, Apple Watch, etc).
• Present day and we can record our own reflections.
• Social media is about communication with others, and about how we see ourselves as people.
• Some social media sites make it difficult for people to “lurk”, and some do not.
• People use social media to tell their stories, and to let the world know who they are.
• Selfies are being used to let the people on the internet get to know each other.
• Selfies are also hated by many, they are thought to be used as a way to expose oneself.
• The pictures, videos, and texts that are posted online have become a form of communication for many people.

Key Terms/Main Ideas:

The main idea of this reading is to inform you on how social media is helping our generations represent ourselves to the rest of society.

Self representation: How a person wishes to present themselves to the world.

Curation: A field involved with assembling, managing, and presenting some kind of collection.

Selfie: A photograph that one has taken of oneself, taken with a smartphone or web cam, and shared to social media.

Quantitative: Relating to, measuring, or measured by the quantity of something rather than quality.

Diary: A book where someone keeps record of their daily events and experiences.

Commentary:

Throughout this reading I was able to make many connections with the author, but there were also a couple things that I disagreed with. I was completely for the variety of ways one can present themselves from the media (written, visual, quantitative). I agree that social media has become a platform for communication. I also agree that social media allows us to express who we really are in a way that cannot be done during face to face interaction. But is it the best way? While reading this chapter, I got the sense that the author believes that the idea of posting our true character online is the best option for getting to know one another. This is where I disagree. Although I still think it is great to express yourself online, I do not think it is the best way. I believe that social media has caused us to lose our skills with face to face communication. Sure, the internet allows us to post our pictures, words, and videos, only a small image from a specific moment. Compared to face to face communication where it allows us to see the facial expressions of others, hear the different tones in their voice, and read their body language. I would rather sit for hours outside on a bench talking with someone beside me, then text for hours with someone who is only 15 minuets away.