I understand subjectivation as the construction of one’s identity. Social media is such a normal part of our lives that many people don’t even realize they consciously think about what they share, which inadvertently constructs an online identity different than their personal identity. In Tim Rayner’s blog post Foucault and social media: life in a virtual panopticon “A Foucaultian perspective on social media targets the mechanism that makes it tick: sharing” (Rayner). Rayner argues that Foucault identified a common human trait that is a huge factor in social media before social media was ever even imagined. Rayner states that“Bentham’s Panopticon, Foucault argues, functions to make prisoners take responsibility for regulating their behaviour. Assuming that they care about the implications of bad behaviour, prisoners will act in the manner prescribed by the institution at all times on the chance that they are being watched” (Rayner). Because the prisoners did not know for sure they were being watched, they behaved as if they were so they did not get in trouble by the guards.
I thought subjectivation and Bentham’s Panopticon was an interesting concept to relay to social media because we definitely have social media where we don’t know who is seeing our posts, such as Facebook, but we also have social media like Snapchat where we can literally scroll through and see everyone’s name who watched our story. Although I definitely filter what I post on Facebook, I find I think a little more about what I post on Snapchat, perhaps because I’m so much more aware of who is looking at my Snaps.
Articles I wouldn’t share on social media would be articles that made me look ‘bad’ to others. For example, as I near graduation the job search is taking up a significant portion of my life. It’s exhausting to worry about classes but also a little intimidating that I won’t know where I’ll be working in two months. This article, about students and employment anxiety is something I would probably read about and maybe send to friends but I would never share it on social media. I wouldn’t want to broadcast a minor ‘problem’ or give my extended family something to gossip about.
I also wouldn’t share this link is about how a gluten free diet might not have any health benefits - unless someone has celiac disease. Although I am interested in healthy eating and dieting myths, I wouldn’t share this post because I wouldn’t want to offend anyone.
Articles I would share would be this Onion article about a “realistic day planner that only includes the first couple weeks after purchase”. Although the idea makes me look a little unorganized, I would share this link because it’s funny and I think a lot of people with busy schedules can relate to it. I would also share this article about cooking hacks because most of them seem like good suggestions and make cooking easier for people. Neither of these posts contain offensive information or information that makes me look “bad”.
Works Cited
Rayner, Tim. "Foucault and Social Media: Life in a Virtual Panopticon." Philosophy for Change. N.p., 11 Nov. 2012. Web. 04 Apr. 2017. <https://philosophyforchange.wordpress.com/2012/06/21/foucault-and-social-media-life-in-a-virtual-panopticon/>.
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