Julia Fiorillo Selfie Response

           The article, “Fear and Selfie-Loathing in America: Identifying the Interstices of Othering, Iconoclasm, and the Selfie” by Jessica Leigh Maddox, has many interesting ideas about the effects of selfie-taking, while exploring the underlying issues between people who take selfies and those who critique them. The root of tension among these people involves those who see selfies as an “authentic self-presentation” and those who “dub them narcissistic.” 

One key word stood out to me in this article: “Others.” Jessica Maddox labeled “Others” as women, racial minorities, individuals in the LBGT community, individuals with disabilities and pretty much any person outside the dominance of the American standard: “cisgender, white, Christian able-bodied male.” I found the use of Others” interesting because the average selfie-taker is not usually a stereotypical white man; it is these “Others” who utilize the selfie taking to give themselves power, while eliminating outside control and socially policed images. Selfie-taking allows “Others” to remove outside influences and photograph pictures that make them feel alive, rather than an outsider taking unrealistic portraits. I thought Maddox was smart to state what selfies offer to “Others:” “Selfie provides Others a way to identify the falsehoods that exist in stereotypes and talk back to the unobtainable images that saturate the American mass media” (32). Overall, it allows them to feel comfortable in their own skin. 

Furthermore, Maddox begins to discuss the fears of selfies. The major backlash among selfie-takers is the people who view them don’t understand the experiences; it also extends the idea that one must aim for masculinity, therefore real men do not take selfies. If one does take selfies they ‘apparently’ fall short of the aspired standards. Additionally, the meme in figure 1, “Real men don’t take selfies,” depicts a young boy whispering to a young girl. This shows men and women are supposedly polar opposites – real men do not take selfies because it’s something girls do. The next meme in figure 2. portrays a strong man with the word “SELFIE” in bold over his face with the phrase “You mean those things teenage girls take?” under him. This meme discourages male selfies because it makes them seem feminine. Most male interests are expressed through photography, while selfies allow “Others” to have their own voices and interest expressed.

Another point I found appealing was selfies are another form of user-generated content. Jill Walker Rettberg, professor of digital culture at the University of Bergen in Norway, elaborates on this idea: “Our fascination with creating digital self-portraits is indicative of our collective coming of age where we as a culture are discovering that we have voices online and can express ourselves rather than simply accepting the mass media’s view of the world” (36). Jill Rettberg’s idea advocates that selfies allow individuals to take place in and challenge the ultimate status quo.

All in all, “Fear and Selfie-Loathing in America: Identifying the Interstices of Othering, Iconoclasm, and the Selfie” by Jessica Leigh Maddox made some very thought-provoking points on the standards of selfie taking. In today’s era people must learn to decipher new ways of photography and get over the fact that selfies are here and staying.