It’s hard to believe that today was my third last class of my University career. While my professor was giving the closing remarks for the class she did a quick recap of what we’d covered over the course of the semester. Something she said resonated with thoughts I’d been having for quite some time. She mentioned that we were a very quiet group in class and that she was surprised we were so vocal in our blogs. I knew right away that I was one of those people. I find it much easier to articulate myself via written language when it comes to educational discussions because it gives me more time to construct what I’m going to say and to make sure everything makes sense before I say it. In day-to-day life I am extremely sociable as well as outgoing and express myself at ease even in crowds. However when it comes to in class discussions and presentations I find it more difficult to have the same confidence and this has been a great frustration of mine over the last few years.
This ties in closely to the issue of online identities. Some people feel freer to say anything they think and feel online when they are hidden behind the safety of a computer screen rather then when they are face to face with someone.
The Internet provides this degree of anonymity where people don’t necessarily know that its you who is posting something so you don’t feel self conscious about speaking your mind. I find it very interesting that sometimes people feel so much more at ease while talking to complete strangers on the Internet then we do with people we know and are close to. This could be because we don’t care about what the people who don’t know us think about us. By posting in an online community in which you don’t know anyone but just want to have your opinions heard and have a discussion you would feel comfortable stepping on toes and would be free of the fear of sounding ridiculous. On the other hand I do however think it’s strange that people feel completely comfortable with sharing their life stories online and their day-to-day happenings that sometimes people really close to them don’t even know abou on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook that are widely accessible. People will give out all sorts of information about themselves on the Internet that almost anyone has the capacity to see but when it comes to face-to-face communication and relationships I think sometimes we are less inclined to share.
So my question is are we hiding behind technology to help us say what we are to afraid to say in “real life?” and is it damaging to our interpersonal communication with one another?
I feel the same way as you do regarding the issue of class discussions. I am fine to interact within my regular group of friends and express my opinions but when it comes to a class setting I don’t have the same confidence. I also feel this way about the internet and my role as a blogger. I feel empowered by blogging, and now I realize it is probably because people who read don’t know who I actually am, and as such their opinion of me does not matter. I do not feel that I am scared to express my opinions in real life, but rather blogging allows me to formulate my opinion and articulate it well. I would not say this is damaging to my interpersonal relationships because, blogging and talking to people are two completely different things in my mind.
ReplyDeleteI really like reading this post, and i think you brought up many interesting points around online identites. I strongly believe we are hiding beyod technology to help us say what we are afraid to say in "real-life", and i strongly believe that its is damaging to our interpersonal communication. I believe the internet provides a safe playing-ground for people to openly express themselves in whatever manner they choose. As you mentiond, the internet provides a degree of anonymity where people dont necessarily know who is posting something, thus you are more inclined to express your true feelings.
ReplyDeleteTechnology is and will continue to eliminate interpersonal communication. People no longer have to pick-up a phone to make an appointment, they know longer need to pick-up a phone to chat with something. The online community also allows for predisposed replies, thus people have time to consider an appropriate response (not necessarily in a timely manner). I think people like the idea that they can be whom ever they so choose to be while online.