In this essay I will underpin the ideology that Ideas around self and identity are being re-conceptualized in the age of cyberspace. I have broken this down into two parts, the first is a discussion of the positive and negative impacts of social media sites like Facebook, on the representation of our true identities. I will examine this through a consideration of Rebecca Mackinnon’s ideology of ‘real identity’, and the implications of these virtual identities on our real lives. In the second part of this essay I will discuss Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei’s art practice and his ambitious actions against the Chinese government; Weiwei uses social media in order to break away from the restrictions placed upon Chinese citizens, through this he aims …show more content…
Due to Weiwei defying the governments will, on April 3, 2011, Ai Weiwei was again subject to abuse by Chinese government officials for “unsubstantiated charges of tax evasion, bigamy, and pornography against Ai that are widely perceived to be in retaliation for his outspoken criticism of the Chinese government”. The criticism of which was written on social media, used to express his identity and freedom of speech, which we take for granted. He was detained for 81 days, in the lead up to this detainment the officials had been harassing him, as well as enhancing surveillance of his online presence, they were well aware of the criticism Weiwei was posting online about them. In response to the conditions that he was detained in, Ai Weiwei produced the work S.A.C.R.E.D., through 2011-2013, in which he made 6 fiberglass dioramas portraying situations he went through, throughout the detainment. He was not going to sit back and let the government get away with what they did to him. As soon as he was released he began the process of creating these works. The installation depicted a literal experience of what Weiwei’s solitary confinement was like. This work, along with all of Weiwei’s artworks, provokes viewers to align with the inconsistencies of contemporary China. Ai Weiwei’s curator of S.A.C.R.E.D., Maurizio Bortolotti stated, “The force of this work and that of more recent works by Ai Weiwei is that he was able to move art strongly towards social engagement once again, after decades in which it was not able to do that”. After all, Weiwei will always be a man that expresses himself freely, whether it be through artworks, social media, music, or architecture, no matter who tries to control him, he will not be
She recalls a disagreement that took place on Facebook between her and a close friend over a few comments placed on her timeline. Wortham describes how she felt embarrassed over the pointless argument. She discloses “I’m the first one to confess my undying love of the Web’s rich culture and community, which is deeply embedded in my life. But that feud with a friend forced me to consider that the lens of the Web might be warping my perspective and damaging some important relationships” (171). Introducing her personal feelings and perspective of how she feels Facebook is taking over her own emotional response online weakens her argument. Wortham reasons that others feel the same as she does. She says, “This has alarmed some people, convincing them that it’s time to pull the plug and forgo the service altogether” (171). Wortham does not bring in other testimonies of those who feel the same as she does, therefore the readers are only introduced to her personal
The lenses of capitalism and communism influence how Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei’s art are seen as political critiques. The celebrity persona of Andy Warhol differs greatly from that of Ai Weiwei, however “Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei share an Iconoclastic spirit” (Delaney, M, 2016 p.27). More so their artistic practices both stem from Marcel Duchamp’s, ‘ready-mades’. This essay will consider the extents to which both artists’ can be considered activists. If there were a binary in place to understand the political effects and various ways activism is preformed, Weiwei and Warhol would undoubtedly be on opposite sides of the spectrum. Ai Weiwei would take on the overtly active and outspoken side, while Warhol’s passivity and projected indifference
“The Facebook Sonnet,” a poem by Sherman Alexie, deciphers the present day culture’s fascination with social media. Alexie scrutinizes how status updates are altering and molding Facebook user’s day to day lives. He gives his cynical opinion of the website in the form of a sonnet, analyzing how Facebook is lengthening the immaturity of youth by concerning its users with opportunities to portrays one’s life as more fulfilling that it is in reality. “The Facebook Sonnet” describes twenty-first century culture in its most negative light by painting a picture of a self-centered society through Alexie’s use of satirical tone, irony, and sonnet structure.
Ai Weiwei was born during the Cultural Revolution in China of 1950s, he inherited a lot of his political knowledge from his father who was a poet called Ai Quig. Ai Quig was then later exiled with his family to re-education camps on the out reaches of a desert in 1958 for questioning government authority. After the Cultural Revolution, Chinese citizens were allowed to travel outside their borders again in 1970s. As a young man, the place that Ai Weiwei dreamed about going to was New York. He went to New York and was exposed to its western influences, its liberty and freedom of expression (Springford, 2011).Using photography Weiwei recorded and documented everything that inspired him. Weiwei visited galleries and art museums that exposed him to the world of conceptual art, becoming influenced by Andy Warhol and Marcel Duchamp. Ai Weiwei admired the ways of artists who could simply proclaim what was art and what wasn’t art, how Duchamp questioned art and when something gets to be art (Springford, 2011).Ai Weiwei came back to China in 1993 to take care of his sick father, and found himself drawn to his responsibility as an artist, to take the task of re-awakening his country through his art and to expose his thoughts on the corrupt and controlling nature of China’s government (Philipson,2012). Ai Weiwei has always been an outspoken artist. In the course of his art making, Weiwei has used a form of activism in his art, with political ideologies that exist because of the Chinese government. He also uses a sense of memory and the countrys past and history. Most of his art involves the public and their outlook of the government. Weiwei requests engagement from the public as a show of protest in his artworks (Harris & Zucker, 2009). When...
“I don’t want to be part of this kind of denying reality. We live in this time. We have to speak out” (Klayman). Ai Weiwei is an internationally known Chinese artist as well as activist, and his motivation and determination can be summed up by this quote. In all of his pieces, Weiwei critically examines the social and administrative issues facing China today. Many of his works exhibit multiple themes that can be interpreted in various different ways. This lends itself to the universal appeal of his art and makes it a more effective medium of conveying his messages to viewers. Ai Weiwei’s activist artwork—and activist artwork in general—is important to society because it effectively forces the viewer to engage in a self-reflective process that makes the viewer critically examine his or her own beliefs and world. Nevertheless, censorship greatly hinders the dissemination of the critical and thought provoking messages of Ai Weiwei’s art and makes his artwork less effective. In order to gain a better understanding of the relationship of Ai Weiwei’s activist art and the Communist Party’s subsequent censorship, I will examine Ai Weiwei’s influential childhood, his specific brand of activist artwork, the censorship of the Chinese government and the effects of censorship on the effectiveness of Ai Weiwei’s art.
Individuals conceived between the years of 1980 and 2000, as indicated by this article, experience serious difficulties finding their actual self due to the online networking outlets; they regularly depict another person life of a fantasy dream American life on the web. As today’s more youthful era makes the transition to adulthood, trying to accommodate between online and offline characters can be hard. “Van den Bergh asked 4,056 individuals, ages 15 to 25, when they felt they were or weren't being genuine online or logged off, with companions, folks, accomplices or employers.” Through this research he found,
In an article called “Relationships, community, and Identity in the New Virtual Society” Arnold Brown explains two different identities one that he calls “found identity” and the other “made identity” (34). The found identity is one that is created by one true self, it’s based off your background, your religion, your sex, everything that truly defines who you really are. And then there’s your made identity the one you make for yourself and how you wished to be seen. As technology advances, the easier it will be for young girls to create these made identity’s of out these famous celebrities, having them focus on things that don’t matter instead of valuing who they really are.
People feel they are on top of the world due to the numerous friends that they have on their Facebook page. Having Facebook friends provides them with a sense of acceptance they had never experienced. These experiences are a gateway to a stream of emotions that has the potential to harm as well as to help. Social media has helped to emotionally feel connected and is an easy and efficient way to stay in contact with family and friends; however, it is harmful when it is the culprit for facilitating and fueling arguments and unhealthy relationships. “As the Danish academic Anders Colding-Jorgensen argues: ‘We should no longer see the internet as a post office where information is sent back and forth, but rather as an openarena for our identity and self-pro...
A person 's beginnings do not completely define a person, but it does serve as a permanent foundation from which their identity is built around. As children, we absorb every sight and experience like porous sponges. Family, religion, environment, culture -- all of these aspects slowly form the background of one 's identity. As an Asian American, this identity is very different from that of a native Chinese woman 's, for I have parts of both cultures within me. It is a unique identity which I believes acts as a double edged sword. Being born into two cultures is a wonderful in that one can be a part of two cultures, but it is also a very confusing to be "divided" between two very different cultures.
“The Facebook Sonnet” by Sherman Alexie brings up ideas and controversy over social media because it decreases face-to-face communication. Though Facebook allows people to contact old and new friends, it renders away from the traditional social interaction. Online, people are easily connected by one simple click. From liking one’s status to posting multiple pictures, Facebook demands so much attention that it’s easy for users to get attach. They get caught up in all the online aspect of their lives that they fail to appreciate real life relationships and experiences. Within Alexie’s diction and tone, “The Facebook Sonnet” belittles the social media website by showing how society are either focused on their image or stuck in the past to even live in the present.
Before the internet, our characteristics such as style, identity, and values were primarily exposed by our materialistic properties which psychologists define as the extended self. But people’s inferences to the idea of online self vs. offline self insisted a translation to these signals into a personality profile. In today’s generation, many of our dear possessions have been demolished. Psychologist Russell W belk suggest that: “until we choose to call them forth, our information, communications, photos, videos, music, and more are now largely invisible and immaterial.” Yet in terms of psychology there is no difference between the meaning of our “online selves” and “offline selves. They both assist us in expressing important parts of our identity to others and provide the key elements of our online reputation. Numerous scientific research has emphasized the mobility of our analogue selves to the online world. The consistent themes to these studies is, even though the internet may have possibly created an escape from everyday life, it is in some ways impersonating
This paper aims to explore the different reasons behind people having different personas in Twitter and real-life through a look at how the social networking site provides a unique opportunity for self...
Multiple identities have been increased by the creation of cyberspace communications according to "Cyberspace and Identity" by Sherry Turkle. Turkle uses four main points to establish this argument. Her first point is that online identity is a textual construction. Secondly she states that online identity is a consequence-free moratorium. Turkle's third point is online identity expands real identity. Finally, her last point states that online identity illustrates a cultural concept of multiplicity. I disagree with many aspects of her argument and I have found flaws in her argument. Technology is an area that does not stand still and consequently outpaced Turkle's argument.
The Web. 11 Nov. 2013.. http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/teens-social-media_b50664> Floridi, Luciano. The Construction Of Personal Identities Online. Minds & Machines 21.4 (2011): 477-479.
Who am I? Wrestling with identity— our history, our culture, our language— is central to being human, and there’s no better way to come to grips with questions of identity than through the crossing of borders. The transcendence of borders reveals the fluid nature of identity, it challenges absurd notions of rigid nationalities, and highlights our common humanity. It is no coincidence, then, that my experience as an immigrant has shaped my academic journey and pushed me to pursue graduate studies.