Thought Experiment OutTakes...

This blog is to relinquish all my thoughts to the paper. In this case, the keyboard is mightier than the soul, so therefore, I give to you my thoughts.

IDENTITY.

NARRATION.

In E.T.A. Hoffmann’s book, The Life and Opinions of Tomcat Murr, we are tossed back and forth through two different narrators, Murr and Kreisler, who interrupt each other multiple times. In my last blog on Laughter, I took this whole tangent about whether or not laughter was good for us, whether it was healthy or not. However, my mind is taking me towards a different tangent this week which will only provide further evidence to my claim that conversations and questions can continue on and on and on…FOR DAYS as I will so reluctantly admit.

Laughter can be considered a great interrupter. Period. Where to go with it now Heavy D? Hmmm…

Laughter can be used differently depending on the context we are displaying ourselves in at the time. Period. Hmmm…

Who the hell are we? Period. Hmmm…

You talking to me? You talking to ME?...There ain't no one else here so you must be talking to ME. Period. Hmmm…

Why do we switch our attitudes, emotions, responses, depending on whether we are online, or off?

Let us start there.

I have this idea in my head, and it just keeps growing and growing and growing. When we actually see ourselves, and I mean in the mirror and not in a photo on the computer, we are seeing the REAL US. Our selves. When we walk around and have conversation, laughter is sometimes used to continue the conversation, thus causing the conversation to continue. On the contrary, fake laughter could also be used to get away from the conversation we are having. It can be used as a building step to tell someone, 'Hey! I'm comfortable! You are a funny person! Let's continue talking!' or 'You are really not that funny, I am just going to laugh so that you don't feel bad, and start to say, 'oh look at the time…' and try and slip out of here…' Nevertheless, real laughter is hard to fake, as we've discussed in class. When we laugh, we can usually tell people without using words whether the laugh was real or not. We, most of the time, cannot hide the truth.

Now we can move into the Digital world. The world of not real laughter, but laughter texted, typed, symbolized through a screen of technology. It is within this screen
where fake laughter is easier to hide. Why?

Joke: Chuck Norris destroyed the periodic table, because the only element he understood was the element of surprise.

HAHAHAHA! LOL!

Was that real laughter? Take under consideration that this was the first time I have seen this joke and think Chuck Norris has a hidden fist in his beard. The truth is, it is hard to know whether it was real or not. And that is the point.
Laughter is becoming to be used very differently through digital technology nowadays, and it seems to be taking a new meaning. As we have touched base before, laughter can be used to end a conversation through text using 'LOL'. It is beginning to become the end of conversation. It is a growing trend to use 'LOL' or 'HAHA' as a way to say, 'I have nothing else to say…' Why do we manipulate laughter's intent this way?

Laughter is also known for its interruptions. Lecture hall, teacher makes a "joke", student alone laughs obnoxiously, the rest of the students laugh at her laugh moments later. OR. Someone says a funny joke, everyone laughs, one person has a funny laugh that is actually funnier than the joke. Interruptions that occur in laughter.

Now what…I have been taught that if I have run out of things to write, to write whatever is on my mind. That is what I am doing now unfortunately.

I was just told that talking to yourself is the first symptom. Thanks Ashley for pointing out the obvious.

"How many people have longboards with green wheels?! I don’t remember that guy having a beard. Then I later realized that EVERYONE who has a longboard has green wheels!" -Ashley

Thanks Ashley. You sparked a random idea, but it works.

Murr and Kreisler. Two separate identities sharing the same space in a book. We all can say we have different identities when it comes to our online/digital and real world personalities. We can hide behind a screen and display our real emotions, thoughts, etc. through a screen because no one is looking directly at our real skin. Instead, they are looking at the skin of our Facebook pages, Blogs, Twitter pages, MySpace pages, e-mails, and so forth. It is harder to hide fake laughter in the real world, but behind a screen, who can tell? We are creating our alter egos…

Brain is being downloaded to new thought stream…L...o…a…d…i…n…g…

Two identities: Murr and Kreisler. I recently I had a retreat with my RA staff in which we discussed about personal issues. Basically, it was a tear fest. And I cried first and had to leave. Who knew I would end up being the emotional one? Anyways, I had this idea that I told my staff. Me being Mexican-American, I think in both cultures. I was born in Seattle and have two Mexican parents who were born in Mexico. I am a first generation kid, growing up with white kids and growing up in a traditional Mexican household with Spanish being the primary language, Mexican food like posole, menudo, tacos, burritos, (yum…), and a sister who is 6 years older and going through her own shit too. She was born in Mexico as well. Culturally, I have had to answer from two contexts, my American side, and my Mexican side. Rarely do I answer as both. It is normally one or the other. I notice that I tend to censor myself when I am in classes or speaking with professors or on campus in general. That can be considered my American self, or westernized self. When I take on my Mexican persona, my emotion, passion, opinions, thoughts, instant reactions, are revealed more often, and my attitude that I received from my parents and sister goes along with it. This can compare to the difference in identities online and off.

Questions to further the discussion:

Why do we censor ourselves in the real world?

Are these different identities necessary for us to have?

In a time where technology is becoming the "must have" in order to "fit" in or feel accepted society, are we all doomed to hiding our real selves and displaying them on a screen?