A Step Back

As we read and experience sites such as Jemma and onlinecaroline and as we use the internet for the millions of other things it offers, it can be interesting to take a step back and review our situation through texts such as the one I am currently reading. It is called "The Body and the Screen" by Michele White. In the book, White explores the different ways that we experience the the computer, each other, and, most importantly, ourselves as we sit in front of the screen. I am most interested, and am working on a final project on, our experience of ourselves and the formation of our individuality as it occurs when we are online.

We've seen our "friendship" with Jemma and Caroline as completely unconvincing and forced. I'm pretty sure, after spending any amount of time with them, none of us really feel that they are our friends. (Speak up if you do!) Yet, there are so many other aspects of the internet, of which we may barely be cognizant, that draw us in in unexpected ways.

White discusses programs such as internet explorer that are programmed to address "you." When you log on to a web browser, it asks "you" where you want to go and what you want to do. White also cites websites such as Amazon.com that ask "you" to review, explore, and buy. White points out that the agency we feel is only an illusion since all we are doing is following a prescripted narrative. Ultimately, it seems that many of our experiences on the web are seeking to create this illusion.