Reflection #4: Living in a Postmodern World

Living in a Postmodern World 

        To me, Postmodernism is a theory that involves the idea that the truth is what one person thinks determined on their beliefs and values and own viewpoint. People make up their own mind based on the culture they are influenced by, and by knowing they have the ability to challenge ideas. Essentially, living in a postmodern world is living in a a world with multiple meanings. Instead of focusing on what the one meaning of truth is, with postmodernism we find that since everyone has multiple ideas of realty, the search for truth is never-ending. 

Since everyone has the ability to bring their own perspective that is shaped by a different culture, we create our own reality. However, one persons idea of reality does not reflect actual reality, it only reflects ones perspective within a culture. This perspective on what is true is shaped by the communities and cultures we find ourselves in, and now that our culture is majority internet based, we find our sense of reality online. 

In the case of social media, Postmodernism can be used to analyze the type of society we are living in and what environment it is shaped by. Because the internet and social media are so prevalent in our society and culture, to understand the type of world we live in, we need to have an understanding and a place within social media platforms.

In Sherry Turkle’s reading “Life on the Screen” she states that “when we step through the screen into virtual communities, we reconstruct our identities on the other side of the looking glass. This reconstruction is our cultural work in progress” (Turkle,177). She implies that we arrange our image online to fit the mold of the computer culture we find our identity in. This idea of having many selves can be seen within the different platforms of social media, and the different versions of ourselves we put out to the world on each. This relates back to the major point that because social media is a major form of communication in our world, we are all able to create our own version of reality within our identity. 

Because the majority of our daily interactions take place within the internet, it plays a central role in shaping peoples idea of reality. The way we socialize has visibly switched from in-person communication to what Turkle calls “computer-mediated communication” (Turkle,178). These social constructions made by computer-mediated communication are what characterize a postmodernist life. With social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter we have the ability to alter our identity depending on not only what platform we choose to use, but the unspoken rules of each social media outlet.

I can easily use my social media engagement as an example of how I participate in a postmodern society. For example, on Facebook, I am very conservative and cautious of what I post because of the audience I have on there. Facebook is made up of family, old friends, work colleagues and most know that it is important to be professional on there. So on Facebook, I change my identity by filling my feed with family pictures, vacation pictures, or the usual “Happy Birthday” post. The way I portray myself on Facebook is much different than the social media outlet Snapchat. On Snapchat, I post funny videos, crazy situations that happen on the weekend, or just random things throughout my day that are much more personal than I would ever dare to post on Facebook. I have freedom on both to post whatever I choose, but because of the environment each social media offers, it shapes my idea of what my reality should be. Although the freedom and endless search of the truth Postmodernism implies allows for new ideas and different connections between people, it can also constrain our identities to the reality we are shaped by within our internet influenced culture. 

Sources:

Turkle, Sherry, “Aspects of the Self” Chapter 7. Life on the Screen, Simon and Schuster, New York, NY, 1997.

Ritzer, George. "The Internet Through a Postmodern Lens." Cyborgology. The Society Pages, 08 Dec. 2012. Web. 20 Mar. 2017. <https://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2012/11/19/the-internet-through-a-postmodern-lens/>.