Ada's thesis outline: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:46, 21 November 2023

Yet the autobiographical isn’t the personal. […]All sorts of narratives are read as autobiographies of collective experience. The personal is the general. Publics presume intimacy (Berlant, 2008).

⭐ intro (what is this text about)

Intimate Publics Online: what, how and why do intimate publics form online?
Going into the Publics part = why, how and how come marginalised people turn to the web for intimacy and connection?
Going into the Intimacy part = what and why is digital intimacy?

⭐ chapter 1 = Intimate Publics Online

In the first chapter I want to explore the concept of "intimate publics," initially defined as both physical and emotional spaces shaped by media and culture. The focus is on redefining what intimate publics are and understanding how they function in the online landscape.

The central questions I want to answer are: What exactly are intimate publics, and how do they manifest on the internet today? Building on texts from Berlant (1998) and McGlotten (2013), to navigate the distinction between "real" and "virtual" intimacy, seeking to conceptualise more adaptable connections beyond conventional norms. The chapter places a spotlight on the dynamics of virtual intimate publics, underscoring their fluid and disruptive role in shaping connections, belonging, and intimacy specifically within the online domain (Smith,Wickes & Underwood, 2013).

⭐ chapter 2 = Online Intimacies of the Unbearable

In addressing the question of why and how marginalised individuals create intimacies through the internet, the second key point of my thesis digs into the interstitial spaces between communities and publics centred around challenging human experiences. The second chapter will then explore the nature of online intimacies within these groups and the reasons behind their formation. Characterised by digressions and alienation, content sharing within these communities creates a paradox where the more distressing the content, the gentler the approach. The human desire to like, be with, understood and respected by other exposes people to a state of deep vulnerability. The vulnerability in the quest to belong and be seen in your most unlikable is what binds these publics together (Dahl, 2016).

The exploration considers the following questions: What prompts marginalised people to create these virtual intimate publics, and how do these online connections take shape? As marginalised individuals navigate digital existence, a shared vulnerability emerges, fostering a commitment to be there for one another online (Lagerkvist & Andersson, 2017). This commitment becomes an antidote to cultural dislocation, offering a space to explore identities outside societal norms (Adler and Adler, 2005, 2008). . Online communities, then, serve as havens where individuals find refuge and emotional support. The narrative unfolds as a testament to the role of digital technology in the sharing of vulnerability online, illustrating its vital function for marginalised and traumatised people.

⭐chapter 3 = Unbearable Intimacy

Lastly, the third chapter explores how our digital intimate publics reshape and reimagine the specific ways in which intimacy unfolds, positioning media as a key actor in producing, shaping, and reframing these relations. Drawing on Schutz's insight that space encompasses not only physical but also social proximity, the chapter considers the connections and "beside-each-otherness" inherent in our understanding of intimacy and digital space (1967; Tillich, 1959). To do this I engage with Bollmer’s claim that intimacy is unbearable (Smith, Wickes & Underwood, 2013; p. 45-58). Unbearability, in this context, reflects the simultaneous connection and disconnection experienced socially, with intimacy situated at the intersection of these relations. Intimacy appears as both overwhelming and anchoring. The chapter then approaches what happens to this conception of digital intimacy when there is an already existing unbearability of life, such as with marginalised people.

⭐ conclusion

In my exploration of intimate publics online, I have begun by redefining the concept and understanding the dynamics of virtual intimate publics. Then I have gone into the online intimacies of marginalised individuals, analysing the reasons behind the creation of virtual intimate spaces and emphasising the pivotal role of digital technology. Lastly I have engaged with Bollmer's claim that "intimacy is unbearable," exploring how digital intimate publics reshape connections. The thesis underscores the transformative power of digital technology in fostering connections, especially for marginalised individuals navigating challenges, offering new perspectives on the relationship between the personal and the collective within the evolving landscape of digital interactions.

⭐ references

Adler, P.A. and Adler, P. (2008) ‘The Cyber Worlds of self-injurers: Deviant communities, relationships, and selves’, Symbolic Interaction, 31(1), pp. 33–56. doi:10.1525/si.2008.31.1.33.

Andreassen, R. (2017) ‘New Kinships, new family formations and negotiations of intimacy via Social Media Sites’, Journal of Gender Studies, 26(3), pp. 361–371. doi:10.1080/09589236.2017.1287683.

Berlant, L.G. (2008) The female complaint the unfinished business of sentimentality in American culture. Durham: Duke University Press.

Dahl, U. (2016) ‘Femmebodiment: Notes on queer feminine shapes of vulnerability’, Feminist Theory, 18(1), pp. 35–53. doi:10.1177/1464700116683902.

Lagerkvist, A. and Andersson, Y. (2017) ‘The grand interruption: Death online and mediated lifelines of shared vulnerability’, Feminist Media Studies, 17(4), pp. 550–564. doi:10.1080/14680777.2017.1326554.

Mesch, G.S. (2011) ‘Minority status and the use of computer-mediated communication’, Communication Research, 39(3), pp. 317–337. doi:10.1177/0093650211398865.

Schutz, A. (1967) The Phenomenology of the Social World. Lehnert. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.

Shields Dobson, A., Robards, B. and Carah, N. (2019) Digital Intimate Publics and social media. Palgrave Macmillian (Palgrave Studies in Communication for Social Change).

Smith, N., Wickes, R. and Underwood, M. (2013) ‘Managing a marginalised identity in pro-anorexia and fat acceptance cybercommunities’, Journal of Sociology, 51(4), pp. 950–967. doi:10.1177/1440783313486220.

Tillich, P. (1959) Theology of Culture. New York: Oxford University Press.

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-== ⭐ intro (what is this text about) ==
 ''Yet the autobiographical isn’t the personal. […]All sorts of narratives are read as autobiographies of collective experience. The personal is the general. Publics presume intimacy (Berlant, 2008).''
-== ⭐ chapter 1 = Online Intimate Publics ==
+== ⭐ intro (what is this text about) ==
-Intimate publics were originally defined by Berlant as physical and emotional spaces made up of strangers and centred around media and culture. The first key issue my thesis touches upon is an imagined but very real conception of these intimate publics as possible without their physicality. To reimagine them in a body-less, digital space, however, we first must understand their original conception.
-Generally, intimate publics are scenes where personal, self, and political aspects are turned into commodities. These spaces can serve as arenas for pedagogical discourse, addressing normativity and normative intimate desires across diverse subject groups. Intimate publics function as settings that promise and deliver sentiments of belonging and solace.  In simpler terms, they create an "experience of belonging" and encompass a mix of comfort, affirmation, guidance, and conversations about living a certain way (2008, p. viii).
+# Intimate Publics Online: what, how and why do intimate publics form online?
+# Going into the Publics part = why, how and how come marginalised people turn to the web for intimacy and connection?
+# Going into the Intimacy part = what and why is digital intimacy?
-For the scope of my thesis I am interested in how these dynamics of intimacy and publicness are being performed on a web-based infrastructure. When intimate publics are online they can become radical, disruptive performances of togetherness. My claim does not go against the public construction of these virtual publics as  ‘failed intimacies that disrupt the flow of a good life lived right, that is, a life that involves coupling and kids, or at least, coupling and consumption’ (McGlotten, 2013, p. 7). Instead I wish to lean into this dichotomy of "real" versus "virtual" intimacy as a means to imagine more fluid forms of connection and belonging. Forms that exist outside normative relational construction and behind, above and underneath institutions, states, nations, and the ideal of publicness (Berlant 1998, p. 284).
+== ⭐ chapter 1 = Intimate Publics Online ==
+In the first chapter I want to explore the concept of "intimate publics," initially defined as both physical and emotional spaces shaped by media and culture. The focus is on redefining what intimate publics are and understanding how they function in the online landscape.
-This becomes especially interesting when you start to look into who makes up these intimate publics online. In spaces of digression from normative society, closeness, vulnerability and understanding seem to grow parallel to anonymity. Diverse groups of individuals that deviate from the norm navigate through intimate publics to foster forms of insider acknowledgment and cultural self-growth. Despite or perhaps due to their devaluation by mainstream society, marginalised people create a sense of social belonging near the technologies that turn the physical world into a place of emotional investment and identification. They create online intimacies of the unbearable.
+The central questions I want to answer are: What exactly are intimate publics, and how do they manifest on the internet today? Building on texts from Berlant (1998) and McGlotten (2013), to navigate the distinction between "real" and "virtual" intimacy, seeking to conceptualise more adaptable connections beyond conventional norms. The chapter places a spotlight on the dynamics of virtual intimate publics, underscoring their fluid and disruptive role in shaping connections, belonging, and intimacy specifically within the online domain (Smith,Wickes & Underwood, 2013).
 == ⭐ chapter 2 = Online Intimacies of the Unbearable ==
-The second key point my thesis wants to highlight is the nature of the online intimacies in between communities and publics centred around unbearable human experiences. These groups of people form themselves around sharing content that is characterised by digressions and alienation. The content shared within these communities, due to its intimate nature, adds layers of vulnerability, creating a dichotomy and paradox where the more gruesome the story, the gentler the approach.
+In addressing the question of why and how marginalised individuals create intimacies through the internet, the second key point of my thesis digs into the interstitial spaces between communities and publics centred around challenging human experiences. The second chapter will then explore the nature of online intimacies within these groups and the reasons behind their formation. Characterised by digressions and alienation, content sharing within these communities creates a paradox where the more distressing the content, the gentler the approach. The human desire to like, be with, understood and respected by other exposes people to a state of deep vulnerability. The vulnerability in the quest to belong and be seen in your most unlikable is what binds these publics together  (Dahl, 2016).
-It is inescapable that the human desire to be like other be with other and be understood and respected exposes individuals to a state of deep vulnerability.  Seeking intimacy, connection, and community becomes a risk-laden endeavour, and it is this very vulnerability—the quest to belong and be seen—that binds these communities together (Dahl, 2016).
-As marginalised people navigate the intricacies of digital existence, holding onto the lifeline of the network and each other in mediated co-presence and embodied connectivity, a shared vulnerability emerges. This vulnerability, carried collectively, possesses a transcendent potential. In the darkest moments, a digitally mediated promise takes shape—a commitment to be there for one another online (Lagerkvist & Andersson, 2017).
+The exploration considers the following questions: What prompts marginalised people to create these virtual intimate publics, and how do these online connections take shape? As marginalised individuals navigate digital existence, a shared vulnerability emerges, fostering a commitment to be there for one another online  (Lagerkvist & Andersson, 2017).  This commitment becomes an antidote to cultural dislocation, offering a space to explore identities outside societal norms  (Adler and Adler, 2005, 2008). . Online communities, then, serve as havens where individuals find refuge and emotional support. The narrative unfolds as a testament to the role of digital technology in the sharing of vulnerability online, illustrating its vital function for marginalised and traumatised people.
-It is in this commitment that people find antidotes to their cultural dislocation and placement as "unbearable". The intertwining of online and offline experiences provides a space to explore an identity outside societal norms. Socially marginalised individuals thus leverage these online connections to understand and contest their societal status (Adler and Adler, 2005, 2008).
+== ⭐chapter 3 = Unbearable Intimacy ==
+Lastly, the third chapter explores how our digital intimate publics reshape and reimagine the specific ways in which intimacy unfolds, positioning media as a key actor in producing, shaping, and reframing these relations. Drawing on Schutz's insight that space encompasses not only physical but also social proximity, the chapter considers the connections and "beside-each-otherness" inherent in our understanding of intimacy and digital space (1967; Tillich, 1959). To do this I engage with Bollmer’s claim that ''intimacy is unbearable'' (Smith, Wickes & Underwood, 2013; p. 45-58). ''Unbearability,'' in this context, reflects the simultaneous connection and disconnection experienced socially, with intimacy situated at the intersection of these relations. Intimacy appears as both overwhelming and anchoring.  The chapter then approaches what happens to this conception of digital intimacy when there is an already existing ''unbearability'' of life, such as with marginalised people.
-In essence, online communities emerge as havens where individuals can seek refuge while still receiving emotional support. Within this paradoxical landscape, where fragility and tenderness coexist with the gruesome, a narrative unfolds, illustrating resilience and communal strength amid the digital vulnerabilities of these unique cybercommunities.In light of the studied lifelines of the internet, we have shown that in the sharing of vulnerability online, the digital technology itself plays a ''vital'' role—for mourners, the sick, and for others. Hence, for some people in dire straits, the internet seems to offer salvation and a refuge; a quality of the medium that relates to its arguably all-encompassing role. Whether this makes potential disconnections and glitches into major threats to ''life itself'' remains to be answered. But as informants stress, it also actualizes debilitating risks of becoming “stuck” in grief. In this context, lifeline communication insinuates a key dimension that explains why digital media are of existential import, while posing particular existential burdens—at the same time.
-== ⭐chapter 3 = Unbearable Intimate Publics ==
 == ⭐ conclusion ==
+In my exploration of intimate publics online, I have begun by redefining the concept and understanding the dynamics of virtual intimate publics. Then I have gone into the online intimacies of marginalised individuals, analysing the reasons behind the creation of virtual intimate spaces and emphasising the pivotal role of digital technology. Lastly I have engaged with Bollmer's claim that "intimacy is unbearable," exploring how digital intimate publics reshape connections. The thesis underscores the transformative power of digital technology in fostering connections, especially for marginalised individuals navigating challenges, offering new perspectives on the relationship between the personal and the collective within the evolving landscape of digital interactions.
 == ⭐ references ==
@@ Line 44: / Line 40: @@
 Mesch, G.S. (2011) ‘Minority status and the use of computer-mediated communication’, ''Communication Research'', 39(3), pp. 317–337. doi:10.1177/0093650211398865.
-Schwartz, A. (2020) ‘Soft femme theory: Femme internet aesthetics and the politics of “softness”’, ''Social Media + Society'', 6(4), p. 205630512097836. doi:10.1177/2056305120978366.
+Schutz, A. (1967) ''The Phenomenology of the Social World.'' Lehnert. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.
 Shields Dobson, A., Robards, B. and Carah, N. (2019) ''Digital Intimate Publics and social media''. Palgrave Macmillian (Palgrave Studies in Communication for Social Change).
 Smith, N., Wickes, R. and Underwood, M. (2013) ‘Managing a marginalised identity in pro-anorexia and fat acceptance cybercommunities’, ''Journal of Sociology'', 51(4), pp. 950–967. doi:10.1177/1440783313486220.
+Tillich, P. (1959) ''Theology of Culture.'' New York: Oxford University Press.