Selfies

My beliefs on selfies are a bit more complicated than the binary options presented in the question. On one hand I do believe that selfies can be empowering in how they are able to capture a specific moment in someone’s life. On the other hand, I also think it distracts from the simple everyday enjoyment of life that happens.  

One story that I think best exemplifies my feelings on this is from when I went kayaking during the summer with my girlfriend. My phone was in a wet bag the almost the entire trip but, numerous times I stopped to take a selfie of the two of us. Then I would put it away and go back to enjoying the views and feeling of one of my favorite hobbies. I knew that it was important to take a moment to capture the beautiful moment that I was having, but I also knew that enjoying the experience was even more crucial than having just the digital proof. This is the same as my feelings about concerts. I always take pictures and selfies to remember my outfits, my seats, and the people I go with. But, I always feel a bit annoyed when I look into a crowd and see everyone constantly recording themselves and the concert instead of letting the moment sit with you so that you enjoy it more.  

I don’t think I would take a selfie at a funeral though, those images felt wrong, and I agreed with the author that “This is the generation of impersonal intimacy and achingly self-conscious expression.” I think that this generation does feel a since of removal from the seriousness and gravity of real things. Not just when it comes to selfies, but I think this reflects on the average response to political events from young people today. I remember being in High School on zoom during virtual learning watching January 6^th unfold on TV and looking at my phone for all the memes and jokes about it on twitter. Those jokes were very funny, but it is the same “impersonal intimacy and achingly self-conscious expression” that the author describes in the photo article.  I think that technology and the exposure to such serious events over the phone has significantly hurt young American’s abilities to really care about serious situations in the world.  

The deaths caused by selfies are also quite concerning. They reflect how technology can detach people from the world around them in a very serious way. These are all people who do not want to experience or live through a moment, they need to capture it. They need to show the world how cool their experiences are. I believe this is an extreme example of the anxious and attention seeking behaviors that people who constantly take selfies may hold.