We Are Our Words Until Our Actions Are Known: A Representation of the Self In Written Words and Works

Most people have heard the phrase "actions speak louder than words" at some point in their lives. This is a generally true statement, as it can be supported through the actions of politicians, abusers, and students in contrast to their words. This is especially applicable through media presence, but with the portrayal of the self restricted to what one chooses to publish to media, is the written online presence simply another version of the self?

By: rue.gall

Figure 1. Man's hands typing on a MacBook keyboard from a bird's-eye perspective.

Theresa Sauter of the Queensland University of Technology, Australia, considers a version of this question of the digitally written self in her article titled “‘What’s On Your Mind?’ Writing On Facebook As A Tool For Self-Formation.” She focuses on the use of social media

Figure 2. A slightly blurry image of Theresa Sauter dressed in business casual, smiling as she stands in front of a river.

networking sites for constructing a version of oneself for the public eye. People “strive to improve, perfect and present themselves,” she writes, “and in this way form understandings of their place in the complex realities in which they exist” (Sauter, 823). Note the use of the plural “realities” instead of the singular “reality.” For the sake of this article, we are going to consider reality, at least in part, to be subjective. Truth, after all, can be generally subjective. Earth was believed to be the center of the universe until this supposed “fact” was proved incorrect. Women were considered less intelligent than men, which was also proven incorrect through both common sense and proper education. With this in mind, these “complex realities” that Sauter mentions may be seen as the realities of oneself. To a parent, their child may be innocent and naive. This is true to them, a reality until proven false. To a friend, this same child may appear to be the happiest, carefree extrovert they know, when they may be masking severe cases of depression and anxiety. Without this knowledge, the child solely exists as the extrovert they know, another truth, another reality, until proven false. If these images are never proven false, though, they remain the images that the child wants to portray. It might be what they believe to be the best portrayal of themselves to those particular people, even if it may not be how they see themselves. It is a representation of their desire, and a way for them to understand how they may have or find their place in the world.

With specific relation to social media, Sauter writes that “people in the past have written about themselves and to others to shape their ethics, values, beliefs and understandings, and hence to fold in and unfold their subjectivities” (Sauter, 826). Sauter compares this to Meta’s Facebook as something that allows for self-construction and expression, a creation of the self online. Relationships, education, experience, and more can all be written in one’s Facebook profile. Posts can be made to share one’s hardships, memories, and experiences, and support can be given and taken in online communities. In short, one’s life exists online with permanent documentation, in a way that a person is free to go back into their media history and both evaluate and understand themselves through what they have chosen to share, like, support, write, or even their style of thereof. Life is both simplified and

Figure 3. an 'X' post or 'tweet' expressing an opinion.

made more complex online, with the internet opening up more doorways to the world than can ever be walked through, but algorithms allow one to find what they are looking for and want from it. Apps and websites such as X (previously known as Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, and more grant individuals the opportunities to express their opinions, beliefs, understandings, and discoveries as well as learn more about the exact same from what other people choose to write and share. 

All in all, the self portrayed in media can be seen as an aspect of the self that cannot be entirely considered a “true” representation of the self in its entirety, due to its constant evolution and adaptation, and its existence in the digital reality as a desired, controlled portrayal of the self, rather than the literal.

The screen to the digital world is made of reflective glass, but is the reflection in the glass you, or what you want to see?