THESIS OUTLINE
Project: ‘Goed Gesprek’
Thesis: Noise
INTRODUCTION
"Goed Gesprek"(working title) focuses on the relationship between family members which is wholly online, principally through Whatsapp. The core for the project will be a group Whatsapp conversation between my mother, my sister and myself called ‘The Very Weird Abnormals’. The Thesis ‘Noise’ will be the road to finding the right message that I want to take out of that digital relationship and work with.
The project currently exists of a series of experiments that try to translate the conversation in a way that the audience can understand the bond that lies behind the words. First in a direct, linear way, but as the process continues it gets more abstract and non linear. What will be used for the end result, and what won’t, is still up for grabs and it all depends on the conclusions I will take out of theory and experimental based information.
When only communicating online, we create a new language for ourselves by using what is commonly called ‘phatic communication’: “Implies information about mundane everyday life in order to start up the conversation; A secret language in an internal language; Indicate online connected presence” - (Danica Radovanovic, Small Talk in the Digital Age: Making sense of phatic posts) But next to that we have voices without an actual voice or body; communication taken from the physical body. Rewriting the versions of ourselves by not physically being in each other’s presence. Remembering each other from memories mixed with imagination, being fed by each other’s ‘pretense’ as digital individuals. We are in control of how and when we communicate; we can avoid a conflict or make a voice seem less direct, or choose to communicate by silence. Over time we have found a way to communicate only via images and seemingly content-less texts, in a way that seems to work for us and keeps us connected in life.
BODY OF THESIS
By focusing on aspects surrounding the online conversations, I did different experiments. By experimenting so much I made ‘noise’ in which I can’t see the true message anymore; why did I start this exact subject? Creating specific questions for myself will help me not only find answers to the questions, but also to the message that I’m trying to find through my experiments. I will take the script of the Whatsapp conversation again and do the exact same thing. By analyzing the ‘noise’ of our communication, I can find out how this mediated communication functions for us specifically. By finding a way of translating this language between us – our ‘secret’ communication – from our three individual perspectives, I can make the content accessible for the audience, and relatable. The thesis will be the search through the noise and uncovers the conclusion by focusing on three main questions:
- By rewriting ourselves, and others within our online communication, do we lose sight of the real personalities and foundation for relationships?
- Is it possible to find meaning through the noise of online communication?
- How can one find a way to stay within a communicative relationship, despite only being connected online?
With each question I will relate certain experiments I’ve done (and will still do), that explore that exact aspect of the project. Reflecting on the experiments regarding the question at hand; is this experiment a conclusion or a way of finding out the conclusion to this question? Probably not, but it will lead to me towards the next experiment which will take me closer to the answer. In this way the process to the final project becomes the project itself. The noise that distracts me becomes in essence the information that I need to explore in order to see what’s beneath.
CONCLUSION
What I hope will happen, is that the conclusion will result in my physical project or overview. I could write down what my conclusion is now, at this very moment. This conclusion will keep changing though. When I started this project I had a certain feeling regarding the online communication in general, which means that automatically I had a hunch of where the project was going; I felt online communication had a negative effect on my relationships. After looking at the specifics and experimenting with different elements I found it in fact was positive instead of negative. But who knows, maybe the conclusion to my thesis will indeed be negative again. Every temporary conclusion will lead to a new experiment or an improvement of an existing one, until it is indeed the final conclusion. The visual aesthetic of the thesis could become a mind map, or a timeline filled with these experiments, becoming one.
REFERENCES
During this reflection I will call on to theory that helps me see different opinions and factual based information. Not only my opinion matters of course, then this could as easily be my personal diary describing a relationship. I need help from professional theorists that have worked in this field for some time. Sherry Turkle with ‘Alone, Together’: “this book brings to life the current communication situation the world is in; our need to be constantly connected, not only in physical being but via our telephones. This constant presence changes the way we grow, changes the way we find our identity, and perhaps changes our identity itself. The world is becoming silent whilst becoming more connected.” This book doesn’t cover everything within online communication though. What in fact may have more importance is how we communicate information to each other and how we process this information. ‘‘The User illusion’ is about our consciousness versus the subconscious, and how these two process information. It explains how our brains work, and how we filter information in different ways. Looking at the current information age we live in whilst looking at different terms that are related to getting to know our consciousness, like entropy, information theory, thermodynamics and philosophy. It shows us how we should focus on our senses and try to see the parts of information that we can’t see in the first place.” It was this book that got me thinking about the information within the communication that I regard as ‘noise’. This noise is what it is all about!
Next to this book I’m looking at two sources about the details of communication and most specifically phatic communication. ’Small Talk in the Digital Age: Making sense of phatic posts’ is a small text but has details that I keep coming back to. Making sense of phatic posts is evolved from the concept of phatic communion coming from the anthropologist Malinowksi and from the phatic function coming from the linguist Jakobson. It explains what phatic posts entail and what they mean for society –physical but mostly digital - nowadays.” The other source - which is a book I haven’t yet purchased – but from which I’ve read the intro, and from which I know I have to use it. ‘Interpersonal Communication’ is a book that teaches its reader what communication specifically entails. It explains the different kinds of communication that exist and how they function as a dynamic between humans, and the rules that are always invisibly present.” Both of these sources are helpful in analyzing the communication within the Whatsapp application between my sister, my mother and me.
Two books that are on their way to me as I’m writing are ‘The Selfish Gene’ by Richard Dawkins, and ‘Reclaiming Conversation’ by Sherry Turkle. The Selfish Gene might be of interest in the aspect of looking at why we still have this Whatsapp group between my mother, sister and myself, when our physical connections have a history of being conflictive. I had a conversation with someone who mentioned that we show a stronger empathy towards our own genes, meaning our family. In regards to that comment I decided to look into the notion that it could possibly be of interest to the project. And ‘Reclaiming Conversation’, well, obviously I have to consider this book as source material as it’s the follow up to ‘Alone Together’ and mentions the necessity of face-to-face conversations in real life. Next to these new sources I’m currently planning to talk with psychologists and/or professors that have knowledge in family communication within the digital age, as well as digital relationships and communication in general. I’ve contacted Daantje Derks from the department Social Sciences at the Erasmus University to help me find the appropriate people.