As I've been reading 1984 again, I was really touched by the introduction that Winston writes in his journal. Here is what he said:
"To the future or to the past, to a time when thought is free, when men are different from one another and do not live alone—to a time when truth exists and what is done cannot be undone:"
"From the age of uniformity, from the age of solitude, from the age of Big Brother, from the age of double think—greetings!"
--George Orwell, 1984, 26-27
When I read this passage again recently, I was struck by how Winston realized his journal writing was not just for himself, but for all those that would come after. He sought to write to give a legitimate history of his life, both the good experiences and the bad. His desire was to help someone beyond his time, beyond his periphery.
Winston's turn to those outside his native time and space is something that is important in this age of social media and discovery. Blogging is a digital conversation medium that is comparable to Winston's journal writing, and Millions of people are sharing their personal experiences to vast audiences of enthusiasts and peers to benefit those that venture to read their words. The world of blogging is a vast one. There are mommy bloggers, star-crossed lovers and romantic bloggers, academic bloggers, etc. The list could go on. What is it that makes blogging such a popular medium where people feel comfortable sharing their personal thoughts? Is it the human need for understanding and acceptance that drives people to share their thoughts online to a innumerable audience?
Something else about Winston's journal that I find fascinating is that he intended his words to make a difference. Blogging and other forms of social media like Facebook and Twitter have been used as ways to organize revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa and mobilize activists in support of causes like the Kony 2012 campaign. These new levels of social media are connecting the world in a more intimate way than ever before and they are being used as tools to affect change. How else has social media been used to affect the world at large?
Many questions...looking for many answers...that is the blessing of living in a world where truth exists and thought is free.
"To the future or to the past, to a time when thought is free, when men are different from one another and do not live alone—to a time when truth exists and what is done cannot be undone:"
"From the age of uniformity, from the age of solitude, from the age of Big Brother, from the age of double think—greetings!"
--George Orwell, 1984, 26-27
When I read this passage again recently, I was struck by how Winston realized his journal writing was not just for himself, but for all those that would come after. He sought to write to give a legitimate history of his life, both the good experiences and the bad. His desire was to help someone beyond his time, beyond his periphery.
Winston's turn to those outside his native time and space is something that is important in this age of social media and discovery. Blogging is a digital conversation medium that is comparable to Winston's journal writing, and Millions of people are sharing their personal experiences to vast audiences of enthusiasts and peers to benefit those that venture to read their words. The world of blogging is a vast one. There are mommy bloggers, star-crossed lovers and romantic bloggers, academic bloggers, etc. The list could go on. What is it that makes blogging such a popular medium where people feel comfortable sharing their personal thoughts? Is it the human need for understanding and acceptance that drives people to share their thoughts online to a innumerable audience?
Something else about Winston's journal that I find fascinating is that he intended his words to make a difference. Blogging and other forms of social media like Facebook and Twitter have been used as ways to organize revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa and mobilize activists in support of causes like the Kony 2012 campaign. These new levels of social media are connecting the world in a more intimate way than ever before and they are being used as tools to affect change. How else has social media been used to affect the world at large?
I have been thinking about this lately, every time I open my journal to write in it. I can definitely agree with all of the reasons there are for writing on a blog. When I was younger, I would feel silly for writing in my journal, on a page to no one in particular. I felt that I should be writing to someone, planning to share this with someone, and I always felt a little wrong and embarrassed writing to myself. At the same time, though, blogging felt a little too public for me. It was only when I could reconcile myself to the fact that, in order to make a difference, I had to share my thoughts that I could bring myself to join the blogging world. I find myself dreaming of changing the world through my little computer screen and keyboard--I find myself hoping that someone somewhere will find my words helpful in some way. That is the beauty of a blog.
ReplyDeleteBut I think that social media is not all good. Blogging is good, yes, but what about the vast expanses of women who blog about nothing in particular and waste their lives away talking to no one about nothing? The internet is full of people talking and laughing about silly subjects--we've created a mass of people who do not possess the capability or desire to speak intelligently about matters of substance.
Like Dr. Burton says about the rules of poetry--how creativity must have form, writing and expressing feelings are the same. I think that it is the freedom of blogging and "posting" with social media that is un-refining us. And while I very highly value the freedom of expression that comes with blogging, I do not like the degradation of writing and intelligence that comes with it.