Myspace

The thing I noticed about the profiles on myspace was that people are trying to portray themselves in a certain way, but it seems like they are kind of exaggerating or embellishing the truth in order to make themselves fit the description of who they want to be. It seems to me like people present themselves differently online than they would in person. This raises a question, then. Which is a better presentation of the person's personality? If someone is shy and quiet in person, but then creates a webpage that is flashy and loud, who is that person? I believe that the myspace page is a kind of role playing. People can present themselves the way they want to be seen, and since no one is seeing them in person, that is the only impression outside viewers gain. This is also where gender comes into play. The guys tend to favor the tough look; it is easier to appear tough in a picture. They can create a new image for themselves that is not influenced by the way they actually appear and act. The girls do this too, making themselves seem wild and flirtatious, when they might be shy or reserved in a real life situation. Both genders try and stress the attributes that make them fit into their gender roles. Based on what we have discussed and read about in class, that is completely understandable.