Caption this….

Sheila Heti’s novel How Should A Person Be explores what it means to be a truly autonomous individual in a world filled with expectations. She asks the reader to stop treating the self as an object, which requires constant revision. Heti strives to free the self from the pressure to conform and seek control. This is especially truthful in a society were social media has become a method of crafting an identity, and creating a persona which is unauthentic and somewhat forged. Heti approaches the self in a Heideggerian manner, and perceives it as something existential.

Furthermore, Heti treats identity as something that can be constructed throughout her novel. This can be inferred from the various memoirs written by the protagonist Sheila. For instance, she recollects walking through the park with her fiancé, and watching a couple exchange their vows. In this moment both Sheila and her fiancé are actively choosing to intrude, and become spectators. Sheila describes the bride as being overcome with emotions as she said the words for richer or for poorer. She agrees with her fiancé in thinking that this reaction from the  bride was “materialistic, stupid and vain”. However, upon further consideration they both acknowledge that they should not be judgmental. This moment may seem insignificant to the reader, and we may wonder why Sheila decides to share this event. It is the direct correlation between this incident and her wedding day which gives this passage meaning.

Sheila describes her own wedding day, as the day she dreaded yet eagerly awaited. She recalls that she was now the bride in front of an audience, and it was her turn to make the same vows. However, something “strange” occurs as she says the words for richer or for poorer, tears well in her eyes and her voice cracks. In this moment, the protagonist does not only mimic the bride (from the park), but also usurps her identity. She performs every word identically, as if possessed by the other woman. Sheila explains her action in this manner: “I felt none of it. It was a copy, a possession canned. That bride inhabited me […] it was like I was not there at all-it was not me”.  Sheila behaved in the manner she believed a bride should without considering her own emotions. As a result, this moment seems scripted. It appears constructed and planned. Therefore, transgressing the boundaries between reality and fiction, and this is something Heti repeatedly achieves throughout the course of the narrative. The reader is forced to ask: is this real?

The compulsion to replicate popular behaviour, and adhere to the norm is evident in our current selfie culture. Many users upload similar selfies with identical captions, and post duplicate comments. Sometimes even capturing meaningless and unauthentic moments to either garner many likes. Therefore, for many of these users it is all about creating a persona other people will admire, and ensuring that their images adhere to other users expectations.

Recently, travel blogger Lauren Bullen found out that one of her followers was replicating every travel image she posted on Instagram. This user mindlessly imitated someone else in an attempt to conform. According to The Mirror, when Lauren confronted the impostor online, she received a telling response. The impostor claimed that “everyone” copied and if this bothered her, then she should have made her account private. This suggest that if an image is posted in the public realm, it no longer belongs solely to its original owner. This image is now also owned to the millions of users who have access to it. In Heti’s novel we can find an explanation for this compulsion to engage with the popular, either by recreating or appropriating it.

“if there’s a pool and people are in the pool and you’re not in the pool, you want to be in the pool just like those people in the pool. It’s just a fact of nature.”-

The above quote captures the modern problem of “fitting in”, a desire to participate and become involved in anything that may elevate the social status of the self. This novel lurks between the boundaries of real life and art. It does not answer the question it proposes in its title, instead it seeks to re-frame and rework the manner in which this question is currently being answered.

To conclude, another pertinent issue raised by both Heti and the controversy on Instagram is the problem of ownership. I am forced to ask this question: who owns an image once it is posted online? Some may argue that the individual who originally took the photograph or selfie is the primary and sole owner of it. On the other hand, other will state that once the image has been posted on a public sharing space such as Instagram, it belongs to all the users who have access to it. This is the response Lauren received from her cyber stalker. The lines between public and private are significantly blurred.

Significantly, social media users are encouraged to believe that the online space is like their own sanctuary, a safe place to post intimate selfies or words. Take Myspace for example, the very name (Myspace) suggest that the webpage belongs to only the user. However, in reality millions of other users can access your page, and take your content without your permission. This is why I regularly encounter articles inviting you to take a look at Taylor Swifts old my Space account. In the real world, you would probably be sued and face the possibility of obtaining a criminal record. To be specific your crime would be described as theft. However, online rules are not as distinct, and you can probably earn millions by taking what simply does not belong to you, and claiing ownership over it.

 

(Link to the article: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/instagram-star-finds-ridiculously-creepy-9261254).

The selfie-culture: women, selfies and public shaming.

In 2013 the term “selfie” was named by Oxford Dictionaries as the word of the year. Its rise in popularity stemmed from its continual usage on social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. Celebrities, Presidents, Prime Ministers and “ordinary” people all indulge in the activity of taking selfie. So what does this neologism actually mean? The OED defines the informal noun “selfie” as “a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website”. This act has become a modern craze with mobile phone manufactures targeting its buyers with incentives such as free “selfie-sticks” and sharper camera resolution. Freud would argue that inherent narcissistic tendencies within every social being is the reason for the emergence of the selfie culture. Arguably, self exhibition has become the focal point of human interaction.

This social phenomenon invites analysis, as many selfies have been at the centre of news making headlines. For instance, Kim Kardashian is notorious for her ability to take “perfect” selfies. She uses the selfie as a form of expression. However, on multiple occasions the selfies she posts are interpreted as feminist statements, even though her intentions may solely be to exhibit. In 2017, Kim posted a picture of herself naked on Twitter, captioned: When you’re like I have nothing to wear LOL. She had presumably taken the selfie in the comfort of her own bathroom. The image shows Kim (naked) holding her smart phone (to capture the moment), whilst pouting in front of a mirror. The very act of taking the picture is visibly embedded within the selfie. The intimate parts of her body censored with two strips. For Kim the selfie may have symbolised a moment of overcoming and celebration. However, once she posted the image online, the backlash she received was astonishing. She was publicly slut-shamed, and slammed as a terrible mother for posting pictures of herself nude. Within hours of posting the image, news outlets were discussing the appropriateness of the image, debating whether or not Kim had “crossed the line”. The problem Kim and many social media users face is that once an image is posted on the web it cannot be retrieved, it is out there for everyone to see and scrutinise. The line between public and private no longer exists. Additionally, the selfie-culture has multiple informal rules in regards to posting pictures. Users are able to post pictures of themselves regularly without constrain. However, the “appropriateness” of each image is policed by the same users who also participate in the act of posting images.

It must be noted that not everyone was critical of Kim’s selfie. Many people saw Kim as the victim of online slut-shaming, and slammed journalists such as Piers Morgan for their mysoginist views. According to many, Kim had the right to take ownership of her own body, and post nude images without being criticised. Twitter users compared Kim’s selfie to the image of Justin Bieber bearing his buttocks. Both images depicted similar content, yet Justin Bieber was praised for his “sizzling abs” and “cute butt”. The public’s reaction reinforces and magnifies the social issue of double standards. The selfie becomes a medium to question social attitudes and initiate discourse. In other words, social media becomes a space to reinvent gender expectation, and “create a radical new aesthetics of the female body”.

Derek Conrad Murray sees the social media as a sphere where political activism can take place. He argues that “young self-proclaimed feminists negotiate this space for political action”. This is evident in the Kim Kardashian controversy. She used her controversial selfie to write an essay on slut-shaming, and embracing female sexuality. Kim expressed her astonishment in an interview stating; “they have seen me naked like 500 times and the censor bar literally was probably more covering than a bikini. I could not grasp why people were still outraged”. The image that was supposed to be celebration of Kim’s post maternity body. Instead it was transformed into a statement which challenged sexist ideologies and protested against slut-shaming.

I cannot help but wonder, if women are still being subjected to distasteful insults online has feminism truly achieved all of its objectives?

Feminism: a glance through the lens of popular culture.

I will attempt to answer the following questions: what does it mean to be a modern feminist? More importantly, what does she look like according to popular culture? Well let me start by stating, contemporary depictions (at least the ones that I readily encounter) suggest that she is stylish, independent, hardworking and makes all her own choices. She is feminine, but not too “girly”. A move away from pink loving entrepreneur, Elle Woods, played by Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde. Someone more like Jules Ostin (from the movie: The Intern) fits the new prototype of a modern feminist. This woman is depicted as the quintessential all-encompassing 21^st century women. She is a successful entrepreneur, a mother and a loyal wife. She embodies these figures and navigates through her duties without compromising with her desires, or at least this is what we are led to believe. The character of Jules seems to persuade the viewers that feminism is bound up with choice. In other words, a truly free and independent women should be able to do whatever she wants without feeling the need to apologise. For instance, Jules sternly decides  by the end of the film, to choose her business and make a decision that could be interpreted as a selfish one. This leads me on to the second adjective (selfish) scarcely used but always implied in representations of feminists. Women of today (like Jules) should be able to make choices which truly only benefit them, if this is what they desire. Individualism is at the heart of these types of depictions. The human is presented as an individual with respective needs, rather than as a member of collective cohort with the same desires and requirements.

Nudity is now also seen as a choice. Kim Kardashian posting nude selfies just because she can, is an example of this. However, the backlash that she received from people indicates the work that still needs to be done in order to eliminate double standards, and misogyny.

The notion of choice is reinforced in the perfume adverts such as Paco Rabanne’s Lady Million. It depicts model, Dree Hemmingway obtaining items of her desire by a snap of her fingers. As wishful as this might sound, this advert has over 2 million hits on YouTube, and has achieved its function of luring women into stores. Despite its many flaws, the Paco Rabanne advert underlines post-feminist ideologies. More specifically, the notion of a modern woman being able to attain through her own will and abilities (in this case by the snap of the fingers). This post-feminist message may have appealed to the consumers, as the onus is placed on the individual, and the problem of gender is eradicated. Popular culture is turned into a platform where feminist ideas are contested and transformed.

Even though, many Hollywood feminist interpretation are moving towards this representation, there are still movies and music videos depicting feminists as man-hating, aggressive and “bitchy” women. Rob Kardashian compares Kim Kardashian to Amy Dunne (the psychotic killer from Gone Girl) in a social media exchange. Posting this picture:

This may have been a “heat off the” moment Instagram post for Rob Kardashian. To me, this was a significant moment in revealing the stigmas a successful modern woman faces. She is scary, and depicted in this manner by many. If you turn on your electronic device and type the term “feminist” in google, the first image that is generated is of Chanty Binx. She is also known as Big Red. Binx is known for her expletive filled response to men’s rights activist group.

This video has over a million hits on YouTube, and the comment section is filled with anti feminism rhetoric. For instance, one comment suggests that Binx has dyed her hair with “men’s blood”, and another person describes feminism as a “hate group”. Unfortunately, this is another dominant image of feminists circulating in the realm of pop-culture. Arguably, a social movement that began in order to fight for gender equality is slowly being turned into a hate movement. Furthermore, according to these example, popular culture has the ability to diminish the importance of feminism in contemporary society. Many understand feminism as an anti-male movement which restrains women, and are advocating its irrelevancy. The meaning and significance of feminism is being revised and contested. The overarching question which is being disputed is whether or not feminism is still necessary.

The importance of feminism in modern society is even more susceptible to criticism,  as it is now become “fashionable” to endorse this movement. Many celebrities are using feminist ideologies to explain their actions, and this is arguably devaluing its historical significance. Political activist Germaine Greer publicly criticised Taylor Swift and her “squad” for overusing this term for their personal gain.This urges the question: is popular representation having an adverse effect on all the achievements of feminists, suffragettes and social activists?