Facebook is one of the most commonly known social media websites. When scrolling through Facebook, a common theme I became aware of was how many posted about their triumphs of the week. For instance, I viewed images of awards my fellow cross country teammates from high school received. I noticed updated statuses about how a fellow peer of mine made the Student Government Board. With everything I viewed, I was attentive that these people were only portraying few of the many aspects of their lives. Essentially, their posts were the highlights of their lives. The few things they posted about constructed a perfect identity rather than the identity they would be seen as in reality.
A few of the posts I noticed are overall gendered. Over working at a pool this past summer, a mom I came to know added me on Facebook. Many of her Facebook posts stem from the highlights of her children's life. She has a son and a daughter, and the difference in gender is clearly represented on her page. One of her posts was even titled, "Boys will be boys," with a picture of her son in the center of a doorway drenched in mud. This shows the playfulness and activeness that is associated with males. Her daughter, however, is portrayed as a gifted dancer. Her daughter's talent is illuminated through her posts on Facebook. Social networking is a source that portrays one's identity. People are able to construct views of themselves as well as their family and friends. It has become a part of our culture; society has adapted to social media and the way they want to be portrayed. Unfortunately, they are becoming obsessed with their social media identity, and it the obsession is increasing more and more everyday.
It is very interesting that people will only post about certain achievements or highlights in their life. I also noticed that similar trend when I was scrolling through my Facebook feed. I agree that people nowadays are more concerned with their social network image rather than real life, and this is troubling because what really matters is what you do in real life, not on the internet.
ReplyDeleteI agree that people are becoming so obsessed with social media. I can neer hang out with a bunch of my friends without someone being on their phone at some point. I think it is great some of the things we have been able to accomplish through social media, but there are many negatives to it as well. Face-to face communication has diminished over the years, and I think something needs to be done to get back to where we once were.
ReplyDeleteWhile scrolling through my Facebook Newsfeed, I also noticed that people only posted about certain highlights in their life. Essentially, this allows them to create a "virtual self"- the person they want to be seen and remembered as. I also noticed some gendered posts, however, they were quite different from yours. The ones I saw were people announcing to the Facebook world that they are gay, and to please be accepting of them, and how they are proud for the person they are. Facebook, and the Internet in general, allows people to craft themselves how they want to be portrayed on the Internet, which is sad because what truly matters is who you are in reality.
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