Differences that Ullman and I have in our experiences are that my Internet interactions are through social networking sites such as Facebook and I have never had a romantic relationship with someone from over the internet. To exchange an email with someone, I feel is almost more of a personal interaction; something that you do once you have met the person. Being friends and talking on Facebook is not as personal as you have many friends and talk with many friends on Facebook. With email, it is more of a one-on-one interaction. Ullman's feelings for Karl were evidently more on a romantic level in which she felt more connected with him. I have always just had friendship-relationships through the internet that led to in-person friendship-relationships. Nonetheless, this piece, though written 12 years ago has an appalling resemblance to many internet-users' experiences today.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Come in CQ
Author Ellen Ullman of the memoir "Come in CQ: Body on the Wire," and myself have a few experiences in common when it comes to internet interactions. I have met someone online whom I have previously not met in person but plan to at some point. When I decided I was coming to University of Michigan, I joined the Facebook group: "Accepted: University of Michigan Class of 2013." Through that site other freshman could see who else was in their class. I received friend requests from people who also visited/were a member of that group. A few of the people I came to learn were in my orientation and a few were also in Kinesiology. At my orientation I was able to meet up with them and talk with them in person. It was slightly awkward and unusual to recognize a face and place it with a picture and the personality you know through the Internet. Luckily, the people I corresponded with are now friends of mine and we still talk, and comedically, it is still mostly through the internet. Another similarity that Ullman and I have are how emails are more like instant messages as I keep my email open and tend to read them immediately and reply to them almost immediately. It is an impulse to check it and almost a need to reply to it.
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I agree that email is more of a personal interaction between two people. When you email someone, your message goes to only that person and only you two can read it. When you are friends with someone on Facebook, it is a more public relationship that can be viewed by everyone. This makes email a more personal form of communication on the internet.
ReplyDeleteI also had people contact me through Facebook after I joined that group last year. However I was taken aback when people tried to be friends with me solely through the internet. I always felt that you could never actually get to know someone through a technological device. In fact, one time I ran into someone that had tried to become friends with me on Facebook and it was awkward.
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