Social Media’s affects to human perception of oneself
After reading the article, How Social Media Shapes our Identity by Nausicaa Renner one could question our ability to grow in a norm that makes it difficult to outlive the past.
When I was younger my parents constantly took pictures of my life just to remember that one point of time. That point in time is a snapshot of our or my feelings but holds so much more value than constantly posting on social media. What was once a narrative of our childhood is now a scrolling time capsule on a screen for everyone to see. The pictures my Mom and Dad took when I was younger lived in a photo album that only grew dustier as technology evolved. Although, I do consistently look through them to try and remember what happened in those pictures the memories are not always present. With the evolution of technology, people’s brains are becoming less resilient. The presence of social media and posting on social media for everything takes precedence. We would rather curate our own photo album for everyone else to see than remember those moments ourselves. Does this evolution of technology impose new problems for people?
The lack of resilience that arises makes it difficult for people to grow. When someone posts a picture or a “memory” (in quotes due to it being a curated memory for the world to see), that memory is there forever. The world of posted pictures drags on and on with every new post. Despite potential benefits of sharing on social media — faster connection to others, easy, and sometimes fun there are downsides.
Downsides to social media — absurd!
What’s a person to do when they have changed but their social media doesn’t let them forget? Renner describes a situation where people in transition can have a tough time becoming who they actually are. People in transition want the world to view them how they view themselves but the presence of past media overflowing never really vanishes. The past still remains in other people’s news feeds. The world is becoming more and more technologically reliant which creates new unexpected problems. The concept of circulation of media is brought to the test. We are creating new media that tries to reflect our views but can we succeed?
Our participation in circulatory media falls short. We think we are posting new, authentic media but what we actually post is a new thread in a never ending circle of media curated to keep us scrolling. When someone who is transitioning wants to post their new selves on social media it is simply masked by their old identity rising to the top. Why? That media never dies. It rises from the ashes and continues to haunt us — affecting our ability to grow and evolve as our lives change.
How does this affect us?
When we post pictures on social media we are creating a version of ourselves that we want other people to see. It is all about perception. Does this perception hurt people’s ability to remember actual feelings from the pictures that we took? It could. I think that when we post pictures, we have one of two options that we can attach to that picture: good memories or bad memories. Most people associate a picture to an event or an emotion that they felt at that time. When we curate our pictures to post on social media we are neglecting those attachments to the pictures. Perception over feelings.
What once used to be a pass-time — looking through photo albums is now competition to the best perceived life. We post constantly to keep others updated but often forget about how it affects us. It affects the transitioning community when they try to show their true selves but cannot. It affects the lives of teenagers growing up who only post to be like other social media users. It affects our memory of the pictures we take. Our identity should not be affected by the presence of social media but it is and we need to understand how to combat this.
In efforts to make a change we can acknowledge the affects social media has to our memory. Take note of the way you once remembered a photo to how you remember it when you post on social media. Think of the differences in interactions with those on social media compared to interpersonal connections. We must understand that social media is a platform curated for our viewing. The past will always remain on the internet but how can we use that to fuel growth rather than hinder it.
