In the first chapter of “Seeing Ourselves through Technology”, Jill Rettberg writes about the history of self-portraits, the different types of self representation throughout history, and how they are different in the Internet Era. This chapter really gave me an enlarged view what I’ve always thought about subconsciously. Self-representations are created and used by everyone to either gain information to make interpretations for growth, for validation from everyone including friends and family or even complete strangers, or to start dialogue and connect or relate to other people. The part of the chapter that interested me the most was how Rettberg wrote about how in today’s Modern era, society is finding new ways to silence voices with hatred, and how people with a voice won’t get ridiculed for doing the same thing as someone that isn’t in a position of power. This is something that I’ve regularly seen on social media, but haven’t given a second thought until I read Rettberg’s piece. Even though we have hit a new age with the advancements in technology in the last 20 years, social proof is human nature and will always make a difference on the perception and digestion of certain ideas. Before this era, only people with status or power were given the option to broadcast. their ideas either via television networks or newspapers. With the Internet era, anyone can put their opinions or ideas out there, but social proof still has an affect on how people view them. Next time you see someone share an idea or experience, think about if it would be received differently based on their status. Bias is human nature and we will all be our own center of attention in our own minds.
Quantitative Self-Representation is collecting data or information on yourself to further understand ourselves. A good example of this is an activity tracker like a FitBit. They collect data on your exercises, sleep, health information and more. This information can allow you to get a view of where you are currently at health wise and can even be shared with others via social media. This documented information allows you to track growth and also allows you to look back and see the point where you started from. “…texts we read in real time in social media represent actual, living people” (Rettberg, 15). Lisa Adams post tweets about her battle with cancer and uses the social media platform as a type of diary and also to converse and relate with total strangers. When the Kellners took her tweets and analyzed them as a body of work like a book, they showcased their personal opinions on them compared to Adams because of how everyone thinks about themselves. The idea of how mocking and disdain comes to those with no power or influence in traditional media on social media compared to the average Joe when they are doing the exact same thing is proof of how society is. “Today you don’t need own a printing press, a newspaper, or a television station to share your ideas with the world. Anyone with Internet access can publish whatever they want. But society is finding new ways to regulate who will be heard and who will be taken seriously”(Rettberg, 19).
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