Why Selfies Do More Harm Than Good - Essay Example

Why Selfies Do More Harm Than Good We humans make things. We create things. These are the things that define us. They also tend to highlight our society to just within a single nation but other nations too. This creation of people is defined as artifacts. Cultural artifacts are the trends or any fashion, etc created by a person concerning his traditional and cultural norms. Cultural artifacts are items that prove to provide information concerning the person`s society and background. Cultural artifacts are not only ancient. They are being made every day by ordinary people. Items which stand out are followed by other people. These items or trends are forward. In this way, the trend gains popularity. People of other cultures may follow it too if they feel the same way about it like the people who create it in the first place feel. (Lifehack.org) A common artifact of today is Selfie. These are our self-taken photographs. Selfies are not only taken by our front-cameras, but they were also taken before the front-cameras were even introduced. This artifact is not restricted to only one culture or a nation. It is common in almost all of the world. This artifact was originated in the early 2000s when the users of MySpace and Flicker uploaded their self-portraits. Teenage girls named them selfies. It was until 2010 when the selfie game finally began. People love taking pictures and collecting memories. What became even more attractive was that people could monitor how the picture was. In this way, selfie spread. This trend became common among countries and of people of all ages. When people with different cultural and traditional backgrounds have a mutual feeling about something, someone, trend, item, that is when the artifact fails to stay within boundaries. People easily follow something else which is not about their society or background. What they feel about it, is common. Not all artifacts gain popularity. Some artifacts highlight religion. Religion based artifacts are sometimes not comfortably followed by a lot of people. A Muslim extremist will not follow any artifact which is concerning Bhudhism. (Merriam-webster.com) Lincoln`s Lost Speech. This is an important artifact which is followed only or mostly by Americans. This speech was addressed by Abraham Lincoln in a small building in Bloomington. This speech holds immense importance in the history of America as it laid the foundation of modern America. Not only that, but it established the Republication Party. In modern day, only traces of the speech are known. What this artifact explains is that some artifacts fail to travel to other countries due to a lack of interest. People from other countries will not feel patriotic towards this artifact as they serve and live in another country. Artifacts are a way of creating bridges between two countries. People of different countries follow and enjoy a mutual thing. In this way, the connection is made. People get to express their thoughts across the people of the other country. (Selfiesatfunerals.tumblr.com) Selfies. The major artifact of today. This trend gained popularity in many countries. Not only teenagers and kids, but adults also enjoy taking `selfies.` Selfies have been the headlines of many news channels. Like any other item, selfies also have certain pros and cons. Yes, they prove to be fun, but they are also met with criticism. A collection of memories is what a lot of people treasure. But in the process of collecting memories, do we fail to be a part of them? This is the question which has been pondered over. Selfies also create privacy risks. By posting them on our social media accounts we are not the only ones who own it. A lot of people have access to them and once they do, they can now do whatever they want with someone else`s picture. Social media provides immense opportunities for exploitation. Face recognition can open locks or even pay by credit card. This is alarming as anyone can take advantage of that by simply using their self portrait. People become more conscious. People are falling in a competition in which they have to post better and more attractive pictures than their fellow friends. This can damage friendship too. People are being judged from their selfies. This creates an unhealthy environment. Teenagers will start demanding money from their parents to buy smartphones with better camera quality. Pressure will build on parents. (Study.com) More importantly, people fail to interact with each other. They aim to take selfies together but do not care to ask how the other person is doing. Social norms are being targeted here. People become ill mannered. Recently, `funeral selfie` became common too. This is the selfie clicked in a funeral. Now, afuneral is an event where we are supposed to be there for our family and friends helping them get through the hard time. Instead, we part ways to look for a place to click a selfie with our hair do. What`s worse is that people are putting up hashtags like `depressing funeral selfie`, `on our way to funeral selfie`, `from todays funeral`, etc. People have lost courtesy. This is alarming. Our modern generation is forgetting the cultural norms and traditions. Technology has enveloped them in such a way that they fail to strengthen bonds with their friends and family. Even sitting with family becomes unbearable for teenagers without their smartphones. Moreover, selfies can also get addictive. People can become obsessed with taking selfies all the time annoying the people around them. Danny Bowman committed suicide because of this. He couldn’t abandon his iphone anywhere. It was recorded that he took around 200 selfies each day. His struggle to achieve best sefies of himself drove him crazy and he had to be admitted in the rehab center for consultation. So is this why we create technology? So that we could suffer from it later? Use of technology must be regulated and appropriate artifacts must only be encouraged. Work Cited Lifehack.org,. 'Why Selfies Do More Harm Than Good'. N.p., 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015. Merriam-webster.com,. 'Artifact | A Simple Object (Such As A Tool Or Weapon) That Was Made By People In The Past'. N.p., 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015. Selfiesatfunerals.tumblr.com,. 'Selfies At Funerals'. N.p., 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015. Study.com,. 'Cultural Artifact: Definition & Examples - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.Com'. N.p., 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015. Read More