Blog Post #3 -Baird
Social media in society is what we may look at as a tool or a resource, it allows us to communicate with one another through a fast and efficient form of technology. However, the downside of social media is that it has the potential to consume us, and it can be argued that social media can be addictive. Although it is fun and entertaining to watch and post fun videos online it also, however, can affect our mental health (i.e., depression, anxiety). In the film Eight Grade, a young girl (Kayla) is infatuated with her online presence, it is evident that social media is a huge part of life especially in young adults and youth. However, in comparison to Nacy Baym’s perspective in Personal Connections in the Digital Age, she points out that technology can be seen as a positive and negative tool. Baym then pulls a quote from (Ling 2012) that states that there are “competing narratives between phones as ostentatious, expensive, stressful, and prone to creating bad manners and phones as assuring safety, autonomy, access to others, and control over the flow of dailylife.” (p.53). Kayla is a perfect example of this for many reasons. One that stood out was when Kayla felt alienated from her classmates and was seen as quiet and shy. Nonetheless, Kayla took to her social media accounts where she was able to define who she was online. Although this may be seen as a positive way for shy individuals to express themselves, it does, however, create stress and anxiety for those when they are then made fun of or judged for what they are posting. This film is a great example of why social media can affect individuals' mental wellbeing, and unfortunately people will be faced with anxiety amongst other mental health issues as well.
Hi, great post! I really enjoyed your discussion about Kayla's obsession with her online persona. It is interesting how Kayla was able to utilize social media to construct a version of herself online that reflects her ideal person rather than her authentic self. These two competing identities undoubtedly created stress and anxiety for Kayla within the film and clearly exemplify Baym's argument about competing narratives. Overall, interesting points!
ReplyDeleteHey, great post. I agree that Kayla falls under the negative impacts that social media can cause because she is addicted to it. Her social media appears to consume her every thought, she defines who she is online, which is the opposite of her in real life, and she develops terrible manners in terms of how she speaks to her father and cannot do anything without her phone. Kayla also appears to experience significant anxiety about who she is making herself out to be in her online persona and why she has not been able to follow the timeline she sees online. She does not look like people on social media apps do, which, as we know, are heavily edited and not natural. She also forces herself to try to engage in sexual relationships without wanting to do it so she "fits in." Social media is essentially ruling her childhood which is horrifying to see. Great use of Baym's competing points of view, and I loved your additions of quotes!
ReplyDeleteHey, I enjoyed reading your post! I found it very interesting watching the film how much more comfortable Kayla was online on social media and in her Youtube videos compared to in person. However, I think this relates back to Baym's perspective on the domestication of technology where technologies have become woven into our everyday lives that we have become so comfortable with social media. It's become embedded in our everyday lives that it makes sense why Kayla would feel more comfortable behind a screen than in real life.
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