R5: Is This Your True Self Online?

Subjectivation is a term that was coined by Michel Foucault, a French philosopher. He studied in social conditioning and identity forming in relation to power, and gave insight to what we do on social media can affect us psychologically. Subjectivation, in my opinion, is similar to the postmodernism definition I gave in R4: Postmodernism and Catfishing, Do They Go Hand-in-Hand? I said that postmodernism allows us to change our personas however we see fit in society. Subjectivation is no different, and in terms of social media, what we share or post exemplifies the persona we want people to see the most. Tim Rayner who wrote, "Foucault and social media: life in a virtual panopticon," says that "a Foucaultian perspective on social media targets the mechanism that makes it tick: sharing...Mostly, when we share content on social media services, we do it transparently, visibly, that is in the presence of a crowd." (Rayner)

When I use Facebook, I tried to be aware of what I share and how it can affect others (unlike some people I know...everyone's watching guys 👀). I share things because it either makes me laugh or I find it extremely important and want other people to see it and share their opinions (which most of the time they don't). When Facebook added the "saved" button on posts, it made it easier for me to read certain articles later so that I wouldn't have to share them on my timeline. Below I'll explain what type of articles/posts I would share on my timeline and which ones I wouldn't.

Two articles I would share

Constance Wu: Asians And Asian-Americans Are Not The Same

I happened to share this article the other day and since I'm taking an American Studies class in Asian American Studies, I felt it was extremely important to share. This article was written by Carla Herreria and it talks about how Constance Wu (Fresh Off the Boat) gets real about racial stereotypes in media like TV and film in an interview with Allure Magazine.

This is How Every Zodiac Sign Scares Away 'The One'

I know a lot of people don't believe in zodiac signs, but frankly, I'll share anything that gives me insight on my personality in relations to my zodiac sign. Thought Catalog is a good website for zodiac
essays and I thought this one was interesting. I don't think I completely agree with what it says under my sign (which is Gemini..Gemini all day, errday lol), I would still share it to hear my friends opinion.

Two articles I wouldn't share

Trump proposes complete defunding of Chesapeake Bay Program

Usually, I post political things from time to time along with my opinion on the post, but if I haven't read through the article fully I'm not going to share it. To be honest, I'm sick of hearing about Trump and the government every day but I like to stay updated without wanting to pull my hair out.

Is 'The Beast' a Metaphor for Black Men in America?

Like I said before if I don't read through an article/essay completely I won't share it, but this article through me for a loop. I believe I saw this on the Bet.com Facebook page (I think it was sponsored), and this was right before the remake of Beauty and the Beast came out for their opening weekend.
While the article made some correlations from 'The Beast' character to black men in America when it comes to being portrayed in the media, I thought it was a bit of a stretch. I still went to go see the movie anyway and I'll probably have to read this in its entirety with a "complete" open mind.

Works Cited

Cook, Chase. "Trump proposes complete defunding of Chesapeake Bay Program." Baltimoresun.com. The Baltimore Sun, 16 Mar. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017.

Herreria, Carla. "Constance Wu: Asians And Asian-Americans Are Not The Same." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 23 Mar. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017.

"Is 'The Beast' a Metaphor for Black Men in America?" BET.com. N.p., 16 Mar. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017.

Quindlen, Kim. "This Is How Every Zodiac Sign Scares Away ‘The One’." Thought Catalog. Thought Catalog, 24 Mar. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017.

Rayner, Tim. "Foucault and social media: life in a virtual panopticon." Philosophy for change. N.p., 11 Nov. 2012. Web. Apr. 2017.