Has Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr made us more narcissistic? Are we too caught up in how the world perceives us to pay attention to what really matters?
Everyone knows I am a strong advocate for technology and social media. While, I agree, it has its cons, I believe that the pros far outweigh them. And even when facing this question, one that is asked a thousand times over again by previous generations to criticize our generation, I side with Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr.
I believe that it is in human nature to express our own thoughts and opinions and want to make them known. That is one of the most beautiful things about humanity. Our brains give us the ability to not only understand what is going on around us, but also how we feel about it, and why we feel that way.
Since the conception of the written language, people have written down their feelings and thoughts. Diaries and journals of common people have been crucial in understanding past eras and time periods. One example of this takes place in Elizabethan England. People would have these giant books where they wrote stories, poems, or drawings that they thought were important. They also included personal passages on feelings and opinions. When one friend went to visit another, it was customary to share books so that the two could share and exchange ideas. They would copy down things that they liked and wanted to add to their own collection to continue the process of shared ideas.
Sounds familiar? These books or diaries were basically the world's first Tumblr, Twitter, or Facebook, providing a platform for people to share ideas and be social despite considerable distance. The only difference is that our platforms are much, much bigger. While the sphere of influence that could be reached by an Elizabethan book could spread to a handful of individuals over a life time, social media sites can reach the other side of the globe, theoretically 7 billion people, in a matter of seconds.
The rising levels of so-called narcissism of millennials has been dubbed "The Selfie Generation". I have no problem with this title. The criticism of selfies are that they focus too much on outer beauty and make people superficial and unpleasant. I disagree. In a world where advertisement and media push beauty standards down our throats, sometimes we just need to say "Hey, I'm beautiful". Again, portraits, especially self portraits, aren't a new concept. Take one peek in an art museum and you'll be confronted with rows of paintings of wealthy merchants or noble families. The only difference is that now everyone can take these images at a considerably more convenient rate. This sounds more like a good thing than bad.
Social media and the World Wide Web has been a huge element in igniting rebellions, changing minds, and uniting people from all over the world. It introduces the possibility of a global revolution, everyone from all over the world rising for a single idea. It allowed for movements to gain immense amounts of popularity that they never would have been able to gain without the help from the internet. Take #JeSuisCharlie, #BlackLivesMatter, #YoSoy132 as just a couple of examples. If social media didn't hold so much power, then governments like China and Iran wouldn't have a reason to be scared and ban it.
The internet is a truly beautiful thing. It is the only platform in the history of the world where everyone has equal say and totally equal opportunity. Obviously this can be skewed by a couple of factors (like follower count, money, promotions) but the concept is pretty much intact. I am so thankful and proud of the internet for forming a weird but generally helpful community that allows people to share their thoughts and feelings on a completely equal level.
This is where the often misquoted line comes in -
"With great power comes great responsibility"
said by Voltaire (NOT Stan Lee or Winston Churchill), a 19th century French writer. As I stated, social media is an incredibly powerful tool, and people have used it as such. However, I agree with cynical Baby Boomers when they say that yeah, people really abuse it. Technology seems to have totally taken over our lives, and not in a good way. It seems difficult now to have a simple conversation with someone without them pulling their phone out. While I love sharing things with my friends on my phone, a night out with buds shouldn't be a bunch of kids sitting at a table on their phones without any actual interaction.
I like to classify this as growing pains. This stuff is new! We haven't figured out a way to be totally responsible with how we use it. It is up to parents to train the next generation that life exists outside of social media. The internet is a supplement, not your life. A quote that I've recently discovered says that "Those who criticize our generation forget who raised it". The responsibility to teach proper usage of new tech and limit internet addictions lies on both the users and their parents. We're in this together. Complaining about it won't help.
I don't have any solutions to internet addictions. I'd recommend thorough research and an open mind. But to answer the questions I posed at the beginning of this post, I don't think so. Every human has an element of narcissism, we just see more of it now because we interact with more people than ever before in history. Real life is both on the internet and off. Our human desire to share our inner thoughts or life experiences is only magnified through social media. While many oppose this change, I feel lucky to be living through this time of invention and accessibility.
As usual, thanks for reading. I set a goal for myself this week to post at least once on this blog. It is only Tuesday and this is my third. I hope to keep it up.
On the topic of social media, I might as well plug my own since I have yet to update my "Contact" page. I'm on Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, Beme and Vine with the handle @theonechameleon (although my Beme and Vine pages are particularly underwhelming). I have a Pinterest and a Reddit too (also @theonechameleon) but I only think I've used each of those platforms twice. If that.
Guess what my Tumblr URL is. I dare you.
Camille
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