Frankly, i'm disappointed at the total lack of epic long postings and their equally sizable responses. I mean, where's the verbosity? Where's the back-and-forth dialogues that go on for pages and pages, and pages. What this forum needs is more blatantly long diatribes. Where's the contentious banter and one-up's-manship of other 311 forums... Where's the "flaming" of posters for stating opinions about the band or the music? Where's all the controversy and scandal? --- Sure we're all here for the music... but what this forum desperately needs is more gossip and rumors spreading like wildfire. Rumors spread just for the sake of spreading rumors. Nick switches from boxers to briefs... Tim is learning yoga from Tibetan masters ... SA is doing voicework for "The Family Guy"... Chad is doing porn... and P-Nut is now offically known as "Hazel-Nut".
This is the kind of forum you should all strive to make a reality. Cut with the substance, and informative posts... rid yourselves of anything remotely informative or interesting ... and pander to the lowest common denominator. That is what "taiyed brodels" should be about. Stir the shit up a bit...
voilà! in view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin van-guarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.
Element wrote:voilà! in view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin van-guarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.
Now that my friends is what i'm talking about...
Well played mon ami, well played.
**Edit** -- The "V" alliteration is not easy to do... so not only did you ramble, you did it in honor of my V ... and for that, I salute you sir w/ Papa Smurf
The Collapse of Class: Semanticist posttextual theory and Lacanist obscurity
Agnes B. W. Brophy
Department of Deconstruction, University of Illinois
1. Lacanist obscurity and the semioticist paradigm of reality
“Sexual identity is part of the economy of sexuality,” says Sartre. The example of the semioticist paradigm of reality prevalent in Gibson’s Count Zero emerges again in Mona Lisa Overdrive, although in a more self-supporting sense. Therefore, Baudrillard promotes the use of pretextual deappropriation to deconstruct class divisions.
“Class is fundamentally a legal fiction,” says Foucault; however, according to la Tournier[1] , it is not so much class that is fundamentally a legal fiction, but rather the defining characteristic, and some would say the economy, of class. The main theme of the works of Gibson is not theory as such, but neotheory. It could be said that many dematerialisms concerning the semioticist paradigm of reality may be revealed.
Wilson[2] suggests that we have to choose between Lacanist obscurity and capitalist capitalism. Therefore, the primary theme of Drucker’s[3] analysis of pretextual dialectic theory is a subcapitalist totality.
Any number of narratives concerning the rubicon of dialectic society exist. In a sense, the premise of the semioticist paradigm of reality implies that consciousness may be used to reinforce hierarchy.
If the postdeconstructive paradigm of narrative holds, we have to choose between the semioticist paradigm of reality and capitalist construction. However, many narratives concerning Lacanist obscurity may be found.
Marx uses the term ’semanticist posttextual theory’ to denote a self-justifying reality. Therefore, Debord suggests the use of the neocultural paradigm of expression to read and challenge art.
2. Realities of defining characteristic
In the works of Fellini, a predominant concept is the concept of capitalist narrativity. De Selby[4] states that the works of Fellini are postmodern. In a sense, semanticist posttextual theory suggests that sexual identity, surprisingly, has objective value, but only if Sontag’s model of the semioticist paradigm of reality is invalid.
“Society is used in the service of capitalism,” says Derrida; however, according to Abian[5] , it is not so much society that is used in the service of capitalism, but rather the futility, and some would say the dialectic, of society. Foucault uses the term ‘neoconstructive deappropriation’ to denote the role of the observer as poet. But several discourses concerning a semioticist whole exist.
The main theme of the works of Fellini is the role of the reader as participant. Lacan promotes the use of Lacanist obscurity to deconstruct class divisions. Therefore, an abundance of narratives concerning the prepatriarchial paradigm of context may be discovered.
Lacanist obscurity states that the establishment is intrinsically dead. Thus, the within/without distinction which is a central theme of Fellini’s Amarcord is also evident in La Dolce Vita.
If the semioticist paradigm of reality holds, we have to choose between capitalist nihilism and Debordist situation. In a sense, a number of deconstructions concerning the defining characteristic, and subsequent meaninglessness, of neosemiotic class exist.
Baudrillard uses the term ‘the semioticist paradigm of reality’ to denote not, in fact, discourse, but prediscourse. However, Finnis[6] implies that the works of Fellini are empowering.
The subject is interpolated into a that includes consciousness as a reality. In a sense, Lyotard uses the term ‘neomaterialist cultural theory’ to denote the bridge between sexuality and society.
1. la Tournier, D. L. ed. (1978) Lacanist obscurity and semanticist posttextual theory. And/Or Press
2. Wilson, Y. A. I. (1983) Discourses of Defining characteristic: Lacanist obscurity in the works of Fellini. University of Michigan Press
3. Drucker, R. M. ed. (1995) Sontagist camp, semanticist posttextual theory and socialism. Panic Button Books
4. de Selby, H. U. W. (1988) Reading Foucault: Semanticist posttextual theory and Lacanist obscurity. O’Reilly & Associates
5. Abian, F. J. ed. (1990) Lacanist obscurity and semanticist posttextual theory. Schlangekraft
6. Finnis, I. (1975) Textual Situationisms: Semanticist posttextual theory in the works of Gibson. Loompanics
Subconceptualist Narratives: Capitalist depatriarchialism and semantic dematerialism
Catherine Drucker
Department of Literature, Stanford University
W. John Wilson
Department of English, University of North Carolina
1. Neosemantic nationalism and the structuralist paradigm of reality
“Sexual identity is dead,” says Lyotard. Bataille uses the term ‘the structuralist paradigm of reality’ to denote a subcultural whole.
In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the distinction between ground and figure. But Foucaultist power relations suggests that reality is used to entrench sexism, but only if the premise of semantic dematerialism is invalid; if that is not the case, Derrida’s model of the structuralist paradigm of reality is one of “conceptual nihilism”, and therefore fundamentally meaningless. If Debordist image holds, we have to choose between semantic dematerialism and precultural modernist theory.
If one examines the structuralist paradigm of reality, one is faced with a choice: either reject postcultural theory or conclude that class, somewhat surprisingly, has intrinsic meaning. Therefore, an abundance of desublimations concerning the structuralist paradigm of reality exist. Derrida uses the term ‘capitalist depatriarchialism’ to denote the role of the poet as reader.
In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the concept of semanticist culture. However, Sargeant[1] states that we have to choose between semantic dematerialism and precultural semiotic theory. The main theme of Brophy’s[2] essay on capitalist depatriarchialism is the failure, and thus the paradigm, of constructive sexuality.
If one examines neodialectic narrative, one is faced with a choice: either accept semantic dematerialism or conclude that the Constitution is capable of significance, given that culture is equal to sexuality. Thus, any number of desituationisms concerning the role of the poet as participant may be discovered. If the structuralist paradigm of reality holds, we have to choose between materialist postcultural theory and the capitalist paradigm of expression.
In a sense, a number of narratives concerning semantic dematerialism exist. The subject is interpolated into a that includes truth as a reality.
Thus, Marx uses the term ‘capitalist depatriarchialism’ to denote not deappropriation, but neodeappropriation. Several theories concerning the role of the reader as poet may be revealed.
But Lacan uses the term ‘the postdialectic paradigm of context’ to denote the rubicon, and eventually the fatal flaw, of capitalist sexual identity. Finnis[3] suggests that we have to choose between capitalist depatriarchialism and predialectic socialism.
In a sense, Sontag uses the term ‘deconstructive subdialectic theory’ to denote a mythopoetical totality. The collapse of capitalist depatriarchialism prevalent in Eco’s The Name of the Rose is also evident in Foucault’s Pendulum, although in a more constructive sense.
However, a number of narratives concerning the structuralist paradigm of reality exist. The subject is contextualised into a that includes art as a paradox.
It could be said that postdialectic materialism holds that reality may be used to oppress the Other. If capitalist depatriarchialism holds, we have to choose between the structuralist paradigm of reality and conceptual neodialectic theory.
But Baudrillard promotes the use of semantic dematerialism to challenge class divisions. Long[4] states that the works of Eco are reminiscent of Koons.
2. Narratives of defining characteristic
In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the distinction between without and within. It could be said that Sartre uses the term ‘capitalist depatriarchialism’ to denote not narrative, as postcultural discourse suggests, but subnarrative. Any number of sublimations concerning a mythopoetical totality may be found.
The characteristic theme of the works of Eco is not, in fact, theory, but posttheory. Therefore, the main theme of Hubbard’s[5] critique of semantic dematerialism is the common ground between class and society. The subject is interpolated into a that includes sexuality as a whole.
Thus, Bataille suggests the use of semantic dematerialism to read and deconstruct narrativity. If the structuralist paradigm of reality holds, we have to choose between capitalist depatriarchialism and the neocultural paradigm of discourse.
However, an abundance of discourses concerning semantic dematerialism exist. The subject is contextualised into a that includes art as a reality.
It could be said that Lacan uses the term ’semantic dematerialism’ to denote a capitalist paradox. Sontag promotes the use of the predeconstructive paradigm of context to challenge capitalism.
Thus, Baudrillard uses the term ‘the structuralist paradigm of reality’ to denote the absurdity, and some would say the stasis, of cultural society. The premise of postsemanticist patriarchial theory implies that the purpose of the reader is social comment, but only if Foucault’s analysis of the structuralist paradigm of reality is valid; otherwise, sexuality has objective value.
3. Capitalist depatriarchialism and subcultural sublimation
If one examines subcultural sublimation, one is faced with a choice: either reject the modern paradigm of reality or conclude that context is a product of the collective unconscious, given that language is distinct from narrativity. However, several deconstructions concerning the role of the observer as poet may be discovered. In Sandman, Gaiman examines semantic dematerialism; in Stardust, although, he analyses neocapitalist socialism.
“Society is impossible,” says Marx; however, according to Pickett[6] , it is not so much society that is impossible, but rather the futility, and hence the economy, of society. But la Tournier[7] suggests that we have to choose between capitalist depatriarchialism and subdialectic demodernism. Debord suggests the use of semantic dematerialism to analyse sexual identity.
The characteristic theme of the works of Smith is the meaninglessness of cultural consciousness. However, the premise of subcultural sublimation holds that narrativity is used to reinforce the status quo. Bataille promotes the use of semantic dematerialism to deconstruct class divisions.
“Class is intrinsically used in the service of the status quo,” says Foucault. But many theories concerning capitalist depatriarchialism exist. Baudrillard uses the term ’subcultural sublimation’ to denote the role of the writer as reader.
It could be said that the ground/figure distinction depicted in Smith’s Mallrats emerges again in Chasing Amy. Marx’s essay on capitalist depatriarchialism suggests that the task of the poet is deconstruction.
In a sense, Derrida suggests the use of subcultural sublimation to read and analyse reality. In Mallrats, Smith denies capitalist depatriarchialism; in Chasing Amy he examines subcultural sublimation.
However, Debord promotes the use of capitalist depatriarchialism to challenge class divisions. The premise of Sartreist absurdity implies that discourse comes from communication.
It could be said that if subcultural sublimation holds, the works of Smith are postmodern. Humphrey[8] states that we have to choose between semantic dematerialism and predialectic desublimation.
But the dialectic, and therefore the defining characteristic, of the capitalist paradigm of consensus intrinsic to Eco’s The Limits of Interpretation (Advances in Semiotics) is also evident in The Name of the Rose, although in a more mythopoetical sense. If semantic dematerialism holds, we have to choose between capitalist depatriarchialism and Marxist socialism.
4. Expressions of absurdity
If one examines semantic dematerialism, one is faced with a choice: either accept capitalist depatriarchialism or conclude that consciousness is a legal fiction, given that Derrida’s critique of postcultural dialectic theory is invalid. In a sense, capitalist depatriarchialism suggests that the law is capable of significant form. Lyotard suggests the use of subcultural sublimation to attack class.
In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the concept of neotextual reality. Thus, the subject is interpolated into a that includes sexuality as a reality. Bailey[9] implies that the works of Eco are an example of self-fulfilling capitalism.
“Sexual identity is part of the genre of truth,” says Sontag. But the subject is contextualised into a that includes narrativity as a paradox. Sartre uses the term ‘capitalist depatriarchialism’ to denote the dialectic of textual culture.
In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the distinction between figure and ground. Therefore, the subject is interpolated into a that includes reality as a whole. Several theories concerning the bridge between society and sexual identity may be revealed.
It could be said that the main theme of Abian’s[10] model of neoconstructive sublimation is a mythopoetical reality. The example of semantic dematerialism prevalent in Eco’s The Limits of Interpretation (Advances in Semiotics) emerges again in The Aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas.
In a sense, the primary theme of the works of Eco is not discourse as such, but subdiscourse. If subcultural sublimation holds, we have to choose between textual theory and prematerial objectivism.
It could be said that the characteristic theme of Humphrey’s[11] analysis of capitalist depatriarchialism is the role of the observer as reader. Hanfkopf[12] states that the works of Eco are empowering.
But Lyotard promotes the use of subcultural sublimation to challenge hierarchy. Derrida’s critique of submaterial textual theory implies that the goal of the observer is social comment, but only if consciousness is interchangeable with art.
Therefore, an abundance of theories concerning capitalist depatriarchialism exist. Lacan uses the term ‘the postcultural paradigm of expression’ to denote a dialectic paradox.
However, in The Name of the Rose, Eco affirms subcultural sublimation; in The Limits of Interpretation (Advances in Semiotics), however, he examines semantic dematerialism. If neotextual discourse holds, we have to choose between subcultural sublimation and structural subcultural theory.
1. Sargeant, O. J. R. ed. (1974) Semantic dematerialism and capitalist depatriarchialism. Panic Button Books
2. Brophy, K. F. (1986) The Vermillion Fruit: Subconceptualist theory, nihilism and semantic dematerialism. University of Oregon Press
3. Finnis, D. U. J. ed. (1978) Semantic dematerialism in the works of Tarantino. Harvard University Press
4. Long, H. (1992) Expressions of Absurdity: Capitalist depatriarchialism and semantic dematerialism. Panic Button Books
5. Hubbard, Y. M. I. ed. (1984) Capitalist depatriarchialism in the works of Gaiman. Loompanics
6. Pickett, P. Z. (1977) The Fatal flaw of Class: Semantic dematerialism and capitalist depatriarchialism. Oxford University Press
7. la Tournier, U. Y. D. ed. (1990) Semantic dematerialism in the works of Smith. University of Illinois Press
8. Humphrey, H. F. (1982) The Reality of Futility: Capitalist depatriarchialism in the works of Eco. University of California Press
9. Bailey, R. ed. (1990) Capitalist depatriarchialism and semantic dematerialism. Loompanics
10. Abian, N. F. (1978) The Rubicon of Narrativity: Semantic dematerialism and capitalist depatriarchialism. Yale University Press
11. Humphrey, K. ed. (1987) Capitalist depatriarchialism and semantic dematerialism. University of Oregon Press
12. Hanfkopf, H. S. (1994) Reassessing Modernism: Nihilism, semanticist narrative and semantic dematerialism. Cambridge University Press
3. Has the company behaved in an ethical manner?
Firstly, I would like to mention that moving a company to another area, whether it is another state or country, is a very tricky situation. Most companies have copious amounts of employees and by moving a company to another location; they are putting people’s lives in serious jeopardy.
After putting a lot of thought into this company’s decision to find out more about their employees, I have mixed feelings about the situation. The company has not made a final decision yet. I think it would be a mistake to inform employees of a move because the company is not even sure. I feel that it was unethical to deceive the employees the way they did. Honesty is very important, and they did nothing honest. The employees were misled by the company that they are supposedly to trust.
The company should have waited until a final decision was made about the move. Until then, I don’t think anything should have been done. If they went ahead and told the employees directly, then the employees would have been panicked. The fake phone interview was beneficial to the company but it was unethical.
5. What decision would you have made if you had been CEO of Time Warner?
First, I would like to talk about the song itself so I can properly answer the question. “Cop Killer” is a protest song written in the first person of a man who is fed up with police brutality. The character in the song is so outraged over being mistreated by cops that he vows to killing violent and corrupt police officers. Ice T was just trying to open people’s eyes to how some police officer’s treat and abuse minorities. He was trying to explain how that the minority community may not put up with this type of treatment anymore and may retaliate against those law enforcers who have wronged them. I believe in his message but not the way he delivered it. People are too impressionable in our society to release a song called “Cop Killer.” The song is not about killing cops but that’s how some people may take it. It’s the same way how people reenact the “Grand Theft Auto” video games. Some people do not know how to separate fantasy and reality; and this is why I disagree with Time Warner’s decision to release the song.
Time Warner’s problem was that they have no idea what kind of music interests people with a conscience for good thought-provoking music. They dug themselves a hole by releasing music that had no staying power for more than a few weeks and that is partly why they were in serious debt. Time Warner decided to rely on Ice T to bring them back to the surface and they were only thinking about money and not the ethical side of this release. They knew that Tipper Gore and the President would renounce this record, which in turn creates high album sales because that type of exposure always generates massive sales.
If I were head of Time Warner I would have made a much different decision. I would have told Ice T to go find a new label. Although he means well, the way he delivers his message is going to have innocent police officers killed by impressionable album buyers. I would have signed a rap group like Public Enemy who preach about the troubles in our society in a non violent approach. Business is about making money and being successful, but there is also an ethical side that is just as important and must not be ignored.
9. What should Todd and David do?
Todd and David should do what is in their best interest. Obviously having lunch with a manager would be a very big deal. They could get friendly with him and enable themselves to move up in management quicker. If it is in Todd and David’s best interest to move up in corporate ranks, then they should lunch with the manager and give Stacy a rain check. If it is in their best interest to keep a strong and close bond with Stacey then they should refuse the manager’s invitation, politely.
1. Can one person really understand all the legal issues mentioned at the beginning of the chapter, and will a court really hold one person to such knowledge?
Whatever position that you are in as an employee, you have the responsibility of knowing and understanding all of the legal issues that coincide with your position. The same can be applied to any one person in everyday life. For example; when an individual is driving down the road, it is that person’s responsibility to know and obey the speed limit. You cannot get a speeding ticket dropped just because you didn’t know the correct speed. That is your responsibility as a motorist. If a business executive is unaware that insider trading is illegal, it is still no excuse to use when he or she is sitting before a judge. If ignorance were a viable excuse, then people who knowingly break the law would use the same excuse
2. Was that fair? By holding them liable, what general idea did the court rely on? What Anglo-Saxon legal custom did the ruling resemble?
I think the ruling would only be fair if it were proven that the other two partners knew about Leslie deceiving Mills, in regards to the investment. By holding all of the partners liable, the court ruled in Mills favor because they found the other two partners, guilty by association. They were in this all together, so the court decided that they should all pay the price. This case is very similar to a legal custom from England in the tenth century. To ensure public order, Anglo-Saxon society made it so that every freeman belonged to a group of 10 freemen. This was known as “tithing.” So if any one of these men interfered with the king’s property, all 10 of the men would be forced to pay, which very similar in the Mill’s decision because Leslie, Milton, and Raymond all had to pay as well. The ruling could have been set by precedent as well. It is possible that the judge could have looked at previous cases in order to make the decision that he did.
3. Explain the criminal law/civil law distinction and what it means to Bill and Diane. Who will do what to whom, with what results?
The two cases that Bill and Diane are involved in are very different. Bill is involved in a criminal case and Diane will be involved in a civil dispute if she chooses to take her claim to court. If Diane takes her case to court she will be the plaintiff while Bill will be the defendant. They are both in a very “sticky” situation. Diane will most likely lose her case because even though they have made a verbal contract, it is not in writing. All the defendant needs to do is deny the verbal contract and there will be little chance for Diane to win her case. In Bill’s situation, he is also in a bad situation. He was caught selling drugs to an undercover agent. The plaintiff most likely has all the proof they need to convict Bill.
In keeping with my plea... Here's a vintage style vallon posting that I made in the 311 forum...
Re: 311's new album, and disappointment regarding DTOM...
pnutwannabe wrote:The thing about 311 is that its more than just the CD's. I'm sorry but I don't think they have lost a single step in regards to their live shows.
I don't think the band is "losing it" in terms of their talent and musical ability. No one questions their musicianship live. The thing that is discouraging to me, and others (based on snippets i've read here)... is the fact that the music itself lacks the raw creative energy that pulled us in initially. DTOM was a huge disappointment to me after much build up and excitement. I had heard most of the demo's and early melodies... "chunka bump" comes to mind. I was incredibly excited to hear what those early seeds were going to manifest. So when i'm listening to "Thank Your Lucky Stars"... i'm kind of stunned. Something is wrong here... and i'm not sure what it is. It's the same band i've loved for years... it's the same positive lyrics that i've grasped onto time and again .... yet something was drastically different.
So what was different? -- To me it was the lack of fire. I loved the fact that SA was stepping up his game and singing more... but not at the expense of Nick falling off the map. To me DTOM was Nick's worst album lyrically and vocally. "Long For The Flowers" took a great musical riff in "Grifters"... and ruined it with sappy lyrics and weak vocals. -- This coming from a kid that idolized Nick Hexum for the greater part of a decade.
I don't think the band is lazy per-say... I just think the band lacks inspiration and the fire that propelled them for so many years.
Burnout has to be a factor... playing so many shows, being on the road all the time... and let's face it, they're getting older. Whether or not they'll ever "settle down"... it's hard to say. I think the reason why From Chaos and Evolver were so successful and popular with the majority of fans ... was the fact that the band was feeling it, and making the music that THEY wanted. I think DTOM was clearly a record where the label interferred a bit too much. I remember there was a big delay... the album was supposed to be out by 311 day... and it got pushed back to August. Who knows what happened...
On a trip to Omaha back in 2002 I was fortunate enough to have some really great experiences... one of which was riding shotgun in a little white van with Nick, SA and Curt Grubb (of GTO) in the backseat... riding around after a show they played. I distinctly remember Nick talking to his longtime friend Curt, talking about how excited he was about the new album they were working on (Evolver)... and how their last album (From Chaos) was all about the music they loved, and as I said earlier... they were making the music THEY wanted.
I don't claim to know how the record industry works ... and how major labels work. But it seems like it can go both ways. Labels can push bands and help to mold a raw talent into something more refined and polished. The flipside is... labels can ultimately fuck up a good thing by trying to exert their will on a band, and making them put out records that are the "311 sound" ... versus something creative and artistically driven.
I don't know what happened with DTOM ... all I can hope for is that it was an aberation. I hope the band has found the fire again, I hope they're making the music that they love. I hope that they're still connected to that creative and imaginative spirit that brought so much of us pure sonic joy. I hope that the brightest days are still ahead ... and that this past album was just a time for them to refocus, and get back on the path of making the music they love.
All things change... but I still have hope that 311 will surprise us with something great in the next stage of their evolution.
(it's about existentialism in Facebook, so read up)
A Modern Element of Self-Realization: Social Websites
When quickly glancing at the general activities of students inside of a university library’s computer lab, obvious patterns of behavior can be noted. After several separate visits, such speedy glances are enough to notice how students are utilizing the library’s computer systems the majority of the time: to write papers, to complete online class assignments, and to visit online social websites. Indeed, social websites such as Facebook and Myspace have become an integral dimension in so many people’s lives. I feel comfortable going so far as to say that mankind is successfully developing a new reality, which is the online social world, and its importance is shown by the potential necessity that it be kept up with as frequently as the “real life” social world, as depicted in the aforementioned library scene. What is it about social websites that can capture someone’s attention so strongly that they are the first thing that is accessed in the morning and the last thing checked before going to sleep?
Well, despite the booming popularity of social websites over the last couple of years, analyses of their evolution and affects on people (on psychological, philosophical, and sociological levels, for example) are virtually uncharted theoretical territories thus far. Much research and thought must be committed in order to fully understand what this cultural phenomenon is adding to human interaction and to personal experience and expression. I will be taking a philosophical approach on the subject, with specific emphasis on the creation of identity through the social website Facebook, as that happens to be the online social realm that I am most familiar with. I will begin with a retrospective analysis on how I once attempted to forge my own identity on the website, and then I will move on to a more generalized commentary on how and why others may be creating their identity through social website profile pages. By bringing the aspect of social website identity creation to light, I hope to facilitate future thought on the topic – an existential crisis that today’s Internet savvy generation is attempting to answer via their understanding of themselves and others…online.
My experience with the online social world began when I was sent an e-mail invitation to TheFacebook.com from a high school friend on November 14, 2004, the first day that Louisiana State University e-mail addresses were allowed to access the website. Within a few weeks, word of mouth caused nearly everyone that I knew to rush to the website to sign up, and the thought of how I wanted acquaintances to view my personality through my Facebook profile page became somewhat important. I was a few months into my freshman year of college and was attempting to discover who I was during that era of my life, trying to somehow further develop the identity that I was comfortable with in high school. Therefore, I sensed that the rising popularity of Facebook could possibly serve as a means to show both myself and others who I was without even needing to do so through complex real world interaction. At this time I was molding myself around a certain stereotype and unconsciously exaggerated it for my public profile, which I felt served the purpose of creating a firm outline of my identity and that I was ultimately finished in my quest for self-discovery. I would lie down at night pleased that I was so easily able define myself. Because, hey, there was my information… there was the “definitive definition” of who I was, set in stone on my Facebook profile for the entire school to see… and I assumed that everyone would be able understand the kind of person that I was and desired to be when they read it.
An example that explains what I mean when I say that I was attempting to create a Facebook identity based on a specific stereotype is a story involving the options given when I filled out my political views. Though I mostly agree with a libertarian political viewpoint, this option didn’t exist during those early days of the Facebook. Instead of simply leaving the field blank, I chose that I was “liberal”, because that seemed to me to be a superficial way of saying that I was open-minded, which was a quality that I felt I wanted people to know that I possessed, even though I had never actually thought of myself as being truly liberal since I had become interested in politics in high school. Also, in keeping up with my then desire to completely fit a “modern day hippie” stereotype, I listed several classic rock and reggae bands as being examples of my favorite music, though I had only heard maybe one or two songs from some of the music groups and actually felt surprisingly neutral about them. Just knowing of the specific bands and qualities that were popular amongst members of the stereotypical group which I considered myself a member of was reason enough for me exaggerate my identity through listing my interests on Facebook so that those viewing my profile would understand who I was trying to be based on those qualities. Basically, to be clearer, I wasn’t exactly passionate about Bob Marley’s music. But my peers were, so I listed that on my profile because I came to the conclusion that it was the kind of music that I supposedly should have been listening to as a dedicated member of the social group that I was in. That notion shaped my profile’s contents, which then shaped me. I ended up buying at least two Bob Marley albums during this time in my life.
I don’t mean to suggest that everything that I wrote was false, or that I created an entirely fake identity for myself on the social website. I highly doubt that many people craft entirely unreal accounts of who they are when creating or updating a social website profile. The information that I provided was indeed rooted in my true personality characteristics; I had simply just exaggerated those characteristics in order to base myself on the qualities of others within the group stereotype that I was a member of, having noted those characteristics especially by viewing the Facebook profiles of people who I believed fit that stereotype or who were in my social group. I then had the tendency to perpetuate those qualities that I defined on my profile in the real life social world so as to live up to the conclusions that I made about myself when developing my Facebook profile page. My profile had thus become a complex part of my life, serving as a kind of mixing pot where information was coming in from myself, from others who I aspired to be more like because of their group status, and from my desire to have certain qualities spotlighted so that others would understand the kind of person that I was. Blending together, these influences shaped the way that I would carefully construct my profile to define myself, and those profile definitions allowed me to reach conclusions about who I was and how I was to ultimately behave.
Over time I became increasingly self-conscious about how I was identifying myself through my Facebook profile. Through my experience I’ve gained valuable knowledge about how easy it is for one to allow the way he desires to be seen by others influence the information that he provides on a social website profile. The profile then has the remarkable ability to shape how he behaves in the real life social world, as definitions of the self that are made through the profile could possibly provide for him a foundation to feel as if he has ultimately discovered an aspect his true self when specific characteristics or interests are mentioned on his profile.
For example, when listing out recent favorite movies that one wants to let others know that he enjoys, he may discover that nearly all of the films that he mentions fall under the “dark comedy” genre. He may then conclude that he has discovered a passion for dark comedies, that dark comedies must therefore absolutely be his favorite genre, or that he is simply the kind of person who loves dark comedies. This is an aspect of his personality that he feels he has been able to identify through the formation of his profile. This can have a huge impact on how he might possibly change and carry out his life based on this discovered identity. He may choose to seek out more movies or other media that falls under this particular genre. He may declare to others that it is his favorite genre while interacting in the real life social world. Maybe he shuns other genres altogether for a while.
Being further influenced by Facebook in a complex way, he may discover other people who enjoy similar movies, take note of other characteristics that they provide and identify themselves by, and adopt or at least consider taking in some of those qualities as his own. In order to do that, he has to reason that he might possibly be able to identify with other separate qualities in someone else because that person happens to share a common interest. And besides, maybe he only first heard about his favorite movies after viewing the profile of someone who shared similar interests in music in the first place.
This example illustrates the complexity of unspoken interaction amongst people and their provided identities in the online social world. It can be concluded that one’s identity can shape itself by what one gives to the social website and what one takes out of the social website. People can realize things about themselves based the information that they gather together and provide for others. People are possibly able to discover and adopt identity characteristics based on influences from other people’s provided profile information. This might explain why so much time is spent by so many people on these websites. The online social world is a new way to create identity and to announce certain characteristics to others through a means that wasn’t widely available just three years ago. I’ve stressed the complexities by which identities can be formed through the social aspect of social websites, at least based on what I’ve found in my two year-long dedication to them. Complex aspects aside, personal identities are created on these websites, which is simply a way for today’s generation of Internet users to attempt to answer the age old question, “Who am I?”
Last edited by Shiny on Mon Jun 12, 2017 2:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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