Selfies

When Oxford dictionary recently announced that ‘selfie’ as their new Word of the Year (“photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website”), I was reminded of Chris Gayomali’s article asking different people why they took selfies. Apparently, he wasn’t satisfied with the obvious answer:

“The familiar if dull refrain is that selfies reflect the narcissism of our age, spurred by the easy sharing capabilities of smartphones and the cameras they house. Facebook, Instagram, and Tumblr provide potentially far-reaching platforms to broadcast close-ups of our faces, particularly the ones we deem fit for consumption by others.”

Amy Rose Spiegel from BuzzFeed’s answer did have a point:

“Selfies … are a way of taking ownership of my body and deciding how I want to be seen. Relatedly, we're all documented online so relentlessly as it is that why wouldn't you want to control the narrative of your own image to reflect the one that you actually want for yourself?”

But methinks it was a teenaged cousin of Gayomali whose answer was closer to the majority’s reason(s):

“I take selfies because:

a) It gives me an excuse to get all cute

b) It makes me feel pretty

c) I get a lot of compliments

d) Sometimes I have nothing to do and I get quite bored.”

And then there is the selfie that I am glad did get taken. It was by Aki Hoshide, an International Space Station astronaut whose selfie captured the sun, the earth, robotic arm, the spacesuit, space itself, and before I forget, Hoshide himself. Pretty sure this selfie would win any award in that category!