Social Media and Me

In his book Identity Matters, author Richard Jenkins says that “identification matters because it is basic cognitive mechanism that humans use to sort out themselves and their fellows, individually and collectively.” In the age of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn, this identification is increasingly becoming a self that is constructed online. How does our virtual self differ from our real self? Does our portrayal of ourselves through the use of social media affect the identity that we give to ourselves and the identity given to us by others?

In a carefully constructed 3-4 page, thesis-driven essay, argue whether or not social media can provide an accurate portrayal of who we really are and defend your position on the consequences thereof. 

Readings: 

·      “Defining Our Role in Social Media”

·       “I Tweet, Therefore I am”

·       “How Social Media Affects our Self-Perception”

·       “You have one Identity: Performing the self on Facebook and LinkedIn”

Things to Consider: (Remember to keep your essay argumentative in nature)

The questions below are meant to guide you as you think about and write your essay. It would be difficult to answer all of these questions, so do not attempt to do so. Focus on a single argument and incorporate, if you can and you’d like, other elements into your own argument.

·      Has the technological world conditioned people to act a certain way online?

·      Can people alter their online behavior?

·      Does one’s online “self” change the way he or she acts in real life?

·      Does being online develop personality? Do you even have the same personality online as you do in real life?

·      Do social networking sites allow for one to create the ideal self?

Requirements

• 3-4 pages, typed, double-spaced, 12 pt. font in Times New Roman and 1” margins
• You must use at least three credible, scholarly sources, one of which must be an article given in class (but at least one other one must be independently researched) 
• MLA format – including a “works cited” page
• Your final draft should have this prompt, your final draft, your second draft, your first draft and your peer review sheet — in that order.