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The narcissism created by these technologies is unique. It encourages not just self-absorption, but more accurately self-consumption. We become creators and consumers of our own brand. We become enamored by a particular kind of self, a pseudo-self. A self-image controlled in much the same way corporate brands are controlled. Complete with pictures, videos, songs, and most of all metrics—the number of friends we have, the kinds of friends we have, and the kind of associations we have. We endlessly noodle, refine, create and consume a digital projection we want others to see. However, we are rarely what we project. This image approximates reality, but it is not reality. This heavily edited and carefully controlled self easily hides certain parts of ourselves we don’t want others to see. This is hardly new of course. In any social situation we seek to control the impression we give. The problem is that in real social settings there are limits to what we can hide. At a certain point people intuitively see through us. Eventually they get a sense of who we really are. And in this way, real friendships can function as a healthy mirror. They become an honest mirror that loves but doesn’t flatter us. Facebook is more like a funhouse mirror. Feeling short and squatty, no problem, just bend the mirror and presto! You are who you wish you were. Over enough time this subtle affect creates a minor split in us. A split between who we are, and who we think we are. This tiny fracture may seem insignificant, but if we remain unconscious, it leads us away from a life of wholeness and integration.

– Is Facebook Killing Our Souls? (via azspot)

(via woody)

Posted 2 months ago 76 notes