In
the second chapter of Luciano Floridi’s The
Fourth Revolution, he ends with some food for thought
that I now would like to develop into a tale of caution. He states that it is
important that we all understand that ICTs, Information and CommunicationsTechnologies, are affecting us significantly, specifically in terms of our
identities and self-understanding.
Floridi
mentions that the introduction of ICTs into society has resulted in a shift
where we now prefer types of objects as opposed to a specific object. As an
example, he talks about how individual cars of the same make and model are now
essentially identical to each other and we will test drive a car to see if we
like its model as opposed to that specific car. He then goes on to bring up the
idea that this seems to have started happening with people as well, which
effects our concept of personal identity.
It’s
been 6 years since Floridi released this piece, ICTs are more ingrained in our
society than ever, and I think that his point still stands. Today, there is
this huge pressure to present a specific and perfect image online. I know that
this has the potential to erode one’s sense of self because it happened to me.
A
couple of years ago, I was completely obsessed with what others thought of me,
especially related to how I presented myself on social media. I would spend
hours editing photos of myself, only to not post them because I didn’t think
that I looked good enough, which I later realized was actually that I didn’t
look enough like the unrealistic airbrushed and photoshopped photos of people I
wanted to look like. I had completely lost my sense of self. I said I liked
things because it was cool to like those things, not because I actually liked
them. It actually got to a point where I didn’t even know what I liked anymore.
Once I realized what was going on, I was able to rediscover
who I was, what I liked to do, etc. However, I think that this idea is more
serious than Floridi made it out to be as it has affected myself and many other
people in my life, so I would like to present his idea as a warning. It is
critical that we all are aware of the negative effects that ICTs can have on
your self-esteem, self-understanding, and personal identity.
Rachel — great post! I can definitely relate to this. I deleted or deactivated most of my image-focused social media platforms a few months ago, and can definitely attest to how social media has altered how I view myself. One interesting thing I've noticed actually has to do with the people I spend time with — if the only deep interaction I have with someone is sending a caption-less selfie on Snapchat, and then I quit Snapchat (and subsequently never see them ever again), what does that say about the strength of our friendship (acquaintanceship?).
ReplyDeleteThis might be difficult if you're running short on space, but I'd suggest being a bit more specific in the tail end of your post. How did you rediscover who you were? What did you like to do and how did that chance when compared to before? I might even rephrase that a little bit — you're the same person, but with a different perspective on how ICT's impact you and the way you act. Lastly, I'd add a comparison of a normal, unedited face, just so people who are unfamiliar with makeup and airbrushing can really see the differences.
I really enjoyed your reflection and it reminded me to reflect on how I am using social media as well. I also went through a phase of deleting various social medias and unfollowing hundreds of accounts after I asked myself if what they are posting is worthwhile for me to have to scroll through. It has actually helped me spend way less time scrolling through Instagram, and I recommend everyone try to do this. The posts you see on Instagram will be ones you actually care about because they are from your closer friends.
ReplyDeleteAlso great job bringing in Floridi's reading immediately and continuing to reference it throughout your blog post. I would recommend adding short captions to each photo, just to describe what you're trying to exemplify with the photos. Also you could shortly describe what sparked the self-reflection you spoke about, if anything. Other than that, I really enjoyed your reflection and thank you for sharing that with us!
I enjoyed reading your post, and thought it was great. You did a fantastic job of bringing in your own personal ideas/story and clearly tied it into the reading. That bolstered both aspects of this piece. Introducing the reading off the bat set the tone for the rest of the post and brought it together well-- great job1
ReplyDeleteThis post is so relevant for young adults today. Many of us, including myself, fall into this trap of wanting to present only a perfect image online. This is a great example of how ICTs are effecting how we behave and think.
ReplyDeleteA suggestion I have is to make the car example from the reading more clear. The phrasing you used was a little confusing and it may have been better to use direct quotes from the reading instead of paraphrasing. You include enough of your own words and examples that direct quotes from Floridi would add to the main idea you're using from him.
It was a great and fun to read article though!