We see them everywhere. They freckle Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, especially. They are #hashtagged, dolled up and taken opposite a mirror, with a “selfie stick” or by a friend or relative. The Palace of Versailles in Paris, the National Gallery in London and the Coliseum in Rome have banned them.
They are “selfies” and they are a necessary evil in contemporary society.
A “selfie” is “a photograph that one takes of oneself with a digital camera or a front-facing smartphone, tablet, or webcam, especially for posting on a social networking or photo-sharing website,” according to Dictionary.com, which also dates the noun’s origin in 2005.
Urban Dictionary defines a “selfie” as “a picture taken of yourself that is planned to be uploaded to Facebook, MySpace or any other sort of social networking website.” Oxford dictionary named “selfie” the word of the year in 2013.
Last May, The New Yorker framed the “selfie” as an enabler for narcissism, but what about when the selfie is used to show off friends or a cool location?
In the 1987 critically acclaimed post-war novel, “The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations,” Christopher Lasch argued that post-war America “had become addicted to instant gratification.”
Well, we aren’t post-war anymore, and the instant gratification of posting a picture of oneself online is not a bad thing.
Whether they are planned, taken with a tablet or smartphone or posted on social media, “selfies” have been a controversial phenomenon, but they really aren’t hurting anything or anyone.
Jerry Sultz of Vulture magazine wrote in January 2014 that selfies have become a “new visual genre.”
Yes, clogging your friends’ feeds with extended-arm shots of yourself post-gym is annoying and a bit overbearing. But if they aren’t having it, they can simply unfollow you.
Selfies are the fingerprints of the digital age. They proclaim to social media “Look at me!” and “I’m here too!” There is nothing wrong with claiming your stake online. Tastefully and with good timing, a “selfie” can bring you confidence with the “likes” you get from your across-the-pond auntie or an ex who stumbles upon your Twitter.
“I take them, but not often. I don’t see any harm in taking selfies,” junior psychology student Natalie Urteaga said. “Posting selfies help people get the self-esteem that they might need.”
These photos we take of ourselves with our new abs, our new makeup and our old dog do not harm anyone. They merely claim a stake, allowing our followers to check us out.
“Selfies” have also addressed issues and have been tools for social change.
Celebrities and comedians alike posed with Lena Dunham’s pink Planned Parenthood tees. Dashing male actors took pictures with signs stating: “This is what a feminist looks like” after Emma Watson braved the United Nations platform promoting her He for She campaign.
Recently preteens used “selfies” as a way to protest against bullying. They were showing the world that they are real people, and letting the world know that bullying can’t take that away from them.
The only harm a “selfie” might inflict is to lower your Twitter, Instagram or Facebook friend count. Who needs followers when you’ve got pictures of yourself that you enjoy, bring you confidence and remind the world that you aren’t going anywhere?
