{"id":1171,"date":"2014-03-24T09:30:35","date_gmt":"2014-03-24T13:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/archivesmouse.wordpress.com\/?p=206"},"modified":"2014-11-21T16:35:23","modified_gmt":"2014-11-21T21:35:23","slug":"selfies-and-the-craze-of-self-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/2014\/03\/24\/selfies-and-the-craze-of-self-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"Selfies and The Craze of Self-Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A few weeks ago, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GenPowell\">General Colin L. Powell<\/a> created an overnight Internet sensation by posting an image of himself, taken in the 1950s. \u00a0The image, capturing the young and dapper Powell in black-and-white, was a direct response to the &#8220;selfie&#8221; taken by Ellen DeGeneres at the 2014 Oscars. \u00a0General Powell boldly proclaimed that he &#8220;was doing selfies 60 years before you Facebook folks,&#8221; and told Ellen to &#8220;eat her heart out.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_207\" style=\"width: 710px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/archivesmouse.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/03\/powell-selfie.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-207\" src=\"http:\/\/archivesmouse.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/03\/powell-selfie.jpg?w=700&#038;h=540\" alt=\"Colin Powell 60 years ago. Courtesy General Colin L. Powell.\" width=\"700\" height=\"540\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Colin Powell 60 years ago. Courtesy General Colin L. Powell.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" width=\"550\">\n<p>If only Bradley&#39;s arm was longer. Best photo ever. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/oscars?src=hash\">#oscars<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/t.co\/C9U5NOtGap\">pic.twitter.com\/C9U5NOtGap<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheEllenShow\/status\/440322224407314432\">March 3, 2014<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"http:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-size:13px;\">Besides General Powell&#8217;s Facebook post, Ellen&#8217;s selfie <\/span><a style=\"font-size:13px;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/entertainment\/envelope\/gossip\/la-et-mg-obama-ellen-degeneres-oscar-selfie-healthcare-20140320,0,3428152.story#axzz2wnyfH5t2\">drew the attention of President Obama<\/a><span style=\"font-size:13px;\">. \u00a0The President, appearing on Ellen&#8217;s talk show, seemed a bit sore that the star-filled Oscar photo drew more Twitter retweets than <\/span><a style=\"font-size:13px;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.nydailynews.com\/news\/politics\/president-obama-poses-funeral-selfie-article-1.1543188\">his selfie with Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt<\/a><span style=\"font-size:13px;\">, taken at the funeral of Nelson Mandela. \u00a0The President&#8217;s dig at Ellen has taken the media by storm, but has also sparked criticism of today&#8217;s culture.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_208\" style=\"width: 710px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nydailynews.com\/news\/politics\/president-obama-poses-funeral-selfie-article-1.1543188\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-208\" src=\"http:\/\/archivesmouse.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/03\/obama-selfies.jpg?w=700&#038;h=464\" alt=\"President Obama and Danish PM Thorning-Schmidt pose for a selfie.  Courtesy Getty Images.\" width=\"700\" height=\"464\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">President Obama and Danish PM Thorning-Schmidt pose for a selfie. Courtesy Getty Images.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The modern &#8220;selfie&#8221; culture is, according to some, a sign of increasing narcissism. \u00a0While <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/media-network\/media-network-blog\/2014\/mar\/13\/selfie-social-media-love-digital-narcassism\">psychologists bicker about the exact nature of this ballooning cultural self-importance<\/a>, it seems that selfie culture is not slowing down. \u00a0Applications like <a href=\"http:\/\/www.snapchat.com\/\">Snapchat <\/a>actually encourage selfies as a form of virtual interpersonal communication.<\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s important to remember in all of this, and what has been lost in the current discussions on selfies in both the academic and public spheres, is that selfies are nothing new. \u00a0In fact, our fascination with photography and the photographic self-portrait traces its roots back to the advent of the camera.<\/p>\n<p>Early photography, much like early computer science or telecommunications, was more for professionals, scientists, and hobbyists. \u00a0However, once the camera became more publicly accessible, people began photographing their everyday life. \u00a0The concept of capturing an image of the present that could be shared in the future was fascinating, and thus drew a lot of attention. \u00a0Self-portrait photography, or what we now call &#8220;selfies,&#8221; was an early development in the photographic genre.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_209\" style=\"width: 518px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-209\" src=\"http:\/\/archivesmouse.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/03\/1900-selfie.jpg?w=700\" alt=\"A circa 1900 &quot;selfie.&quot;  Courtesy Shorpy.com.\"   \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A circa 1900 &#8220;selfie.&#8221; Courtesy Shorpy.com.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Individuals from all walks of life were interested in taking self portraits in photographic form, combining the technological wonder of the camera with the natural human interest in the self. \u00a0Cameras captured and preserved what mirrors reflected: cultural views on beauty, fashion, and the self.<\/p>\n<div id=\"217\" style=\"width: 605px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-217 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/archivesmouse.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/03\/anastasia-photo.jpg?w=700\" alt=\"Grand Dutchess Anastasia, circa 1913.  Courtesy @HistoricalPics\"   \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grand Dutchess Anastasia, circa 1913. Courtesy @HistoricalPics<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-size:13px;\"><span style=\"font-size:13px;\">Calling selfies new, and claiming that they are a symptom of the increasing narcissism, is misinformed. \u00a0The technological boom of the last 30 years has given individuals from all walks of life the ability to indulge in many activities once only accessible to\u00a0the elite. \u00a0Cheap cell phones with front-facing cameras have made the selfie a cultural phenomenon, expanding the genre out of its otherwise archaic roots. However, it certainly is not something new to our time. \u00a0General Powell may have been doing selfies before Ellen DeGeneres, but Grand Dutchess Anastasia was doing it before Powell was even born. \u00a0So the next time you smile for a selfie, remember the generations before you that did the same thing (using slightly larger equipment, of course)!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>What do you think? \u00a0Do &#8220;selfies&#8221; reflect increased narcissism? \u00a0How does technology play a role in cultural expression?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>  <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/gocomments\/archivesmouse.wordpress.com\/206\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.wordpress.com\/1.0\/comments\/archivesmouse.wordpress.com\/206\/\" \/><\/a> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/pixel.wp.com\/b.gif?host=archivesmouse.wordpress.com&#038;blog=58094777&#038;%23038;post=206&#038;%23038;subd=archivesmouse&#038;%23038;ref=&#038;%23038;feed=1\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A few weeks ago, General Colin L. Powell created an overnight Internet sensation by posting an image of himself, taken in the 1950s. &nbsp;The image, capturing the young and dapper Powell in black-and-white, was a direct response to the &ldquo;selfie&rdquo; taken by Ellen DeGeneres at the 2014 Oscars. &nbsp;General Powell boldly proclaimed that he &ldquo;was&hellip;<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/pixel.wp.com\/b.gif?host=archivesmouse.wordpress.com&amp;blog=58094777&amp;post=206&amp;subd=archivesmouse&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/2014\/03\/24\/selfies-and-the-craze-of-self-photography\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1886,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[109722],"tags":[81907,89335,89336,89337,89338,81908,89339,24317,109703,110488],"class_list":["post-1171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-student-blog-project-2013","tag-archives-in-the-news","tag-barack-obama","tag-cell-phones","tag-colin-powell","tag-ellen-degeneres","tag-popular-culture","tag-selfies","tag-social-media","tag-syndicated","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1886"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/wrpg211\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}