Text and Communication
As I was trying to decide what to focus on for this project as a culmination of all that has been running through my mind during this course, the idea of graffiti and graffiti ‘tags’ (individual identifying symbol) seemed a great example of a text-based form of communication. Furthermore, graffiti and ‘tagging’ displayed many parallels between how people communicate and form identity through symbols/images/text and the way these identities are then shared with others, as in social media. In my research, I discovered the historical evolution of graffiti, and its eventual connection with rap music. This led to the short film I created using VideoScribe. This was my first time using this tool (you can find it for free under the Connect Resources page) and it was a fun challenge creating what felt more like art expression then a required assignment. There were some tricky (super glitchy) and limiting aspects, like not being able to use music for only certain clips, so having to choose between voice recording OR soundtrack options, not both (or just complete failure of audio entirely). There were also some convenient features to this tool though, so I would suggest checking it out. Please watch the video, but then return here to read the accompanying write up, as the video is intended more as a visual expression of idea formation, rather than purely informative.
My video – (The video was much better with the Beastie Boys “Flowin’ Prose”, but after 3 attempts at uploading this from VideoScribe to YouTube without audio, I gave up and used selected music from YouTube editor.)
Text and Communication – Language, Graffiti, and Identity
Current students are exposed to many different forms of communication and language use. As discussed by the New London Group (1996), “[w]hen the proximity of cultural and linguistic diversity is one of the key facts of our time, the very nature of language learning has changed (64). With so many different cultures forming new methods of communication internally as well as externally interacting and exchanging with other cultures and societies, the very idea of communication must be approached from a broader perspective. This perspective must recognize the interconnectivity of societies created by and through technology use. How traditional forms of written language have changed and morphed into new representations of language communication with symbols beyond the alphabet, and then shared with public audiences.
Addressing the current practices of communication such as social media, especially among youth, mediated (specifically social media) connections and interactions have influence over identity formation. Using public opinion and socially influenced methods of communication like social media, humans create identity based on their interactions. Creating profiles which display images and text presenting an individual’s created identity/persona, or perspective of self, and then receiving feedback about this identity through public interaction and communication, leads to socially mediated identities based on public ideals. The only way this socially determined identity formation has changed from traditional/historical perspectives, is the audience. Where once only local culture determined identity, there is now a global display and exchange and communication between cultures and societies which determines an individual’s identity. As evidenced by Boyd (2009), “Talking about a public also implies that there must be multiple publics separated by social contexts…Networked publics are one type of mediated public; the network mediates the interactions between members of the public. Media of all stripes have enabled the development of mediated publics.” (8). A social media profile is a symbol and representation of culturally determined language and identity. This symbolization is also found within graffiti tags, as publicly shared symbols of identity which are then interpreted, influenced, and determined by society.
“Learning society’s rules requires trial and error, validation and admonishment; it is knowledge that teenagers learn through action, not theory. Society’s norms and rules only provide the collectively imagined boundaries. Teenagers are also tasked with deciding how they want to fit into the structures that society provides. Their social identity is partially defined by themselves, partially defined by others. Learning through impression management is key to developing a social identity.” (Boyd, 21)
Hedergaard (2014) discusses Vygotsky’s perspective of communication through artistic expression as socially influenced, where “Art is the social within us, even if its action is performed by a single individual, it does not mean that its essence is individual. It is quite naıve and inappropriate to take the social to be collective, as with a large crowd of persons. The social also existed where there is only one person with his individual experience and tribulations (1971, p.249)” (394).
Graffiti is not just a recent expression, but has been around for centuries: “The history of graffiti stretches from the dawn of man’s first communications on cave walls to the politically charged urban wall murals or ‘pieces’ of today’s inner cities…it rose to prominence as a result of its link to the culture of Hip-Hop in urban centres in the late 1960’s and 1970’s. (Parks, 2009,10). As this interaction between individual and socially determined identity became publicly displayed and communicated through both oral (rap/hip-hop) and symbolic (graffiti) expression, human interactions eventually became globally possible through the creation of the internet. The Internet became a catalyst for furthering the extension of this oral and symbolic expression of identity; what started as graffiti, and eventually came to include graffiti and social media as parallel forms of reaching a wider audience to inform and reaffirm created identities.
Graffiti “transcends national and societal boundaries and has created a subculture that connects young people who may never get to see each other personally. It also creates local communities of young people, where the status among the members is important…What is special for the youth graffiti today in contrast to these mentioned forms of graffiti is that the writing of a name is a symbol and a synonym for the writer and not his/her real name or initials.” (Hedegaard, 387-388).
Our expressions, whether evidently artistic or subtly presented through images and text, are our ways of interacting with the world around us and using this interaction to create our own sense of existence and identity within a society. This process is evident in forms of graffiti symbolization and tagging as well as on social media profiles. Whether graffiti tags or profile pages, both are seeking validation from society and using this interaction and communication method to create identity. “Identity development should also always be examined in relation to the context (environment, conditions) that the individual is surrounded by. Nevertheless, how the individual relates to the context (other people, artifacts, tools, objects, etc.) is probably of greater importance.” (Watzlawik, 2014, 409).
These alterations and developments of language use reflect socially determined perspectives and ideas concerning communication. Within current classrooms, educators need to recognize this shift in language and communication systems and its globally connected qualities, which society has determined the ‘new language’ of current communication/interaction, and approach literacy pedagogy from this ‘altered language’ context.
References
Boyd, D. (2009). Why Youth (Heart) Social Network Sites: The Role of Networked Publics in Teenage Social Life. Retrieved from:
http://www.danah.org/papers/WhyYouthHeart.pdf
Hedegaard, Mariane. (2014). Exploring tension and contradictions in youth’s activity of painting graffiti. Culture & psychology, 20(3), 387-403. Retrieved from:
http://cap.sagepub.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/content/20/3/387.full.pdf+html
The New London Group. A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies: Designing Social Futures.
http://hepgjournals.org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/doi/pdf/10.17763/haer.66.1.17370n67v22j160u
Parks, Michelle. (2009). Writing on the walls: Graffiti and civic identity. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing. Retrieved from:
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/docview/193265360?pq-origsite=summon
Watzlawik, Meike. (2014). The “art” of identity development – Graffiti painters moving through time and space. Culture & psychology, 20(3), 404-415. Retrieved from:
http://cap.sagepub.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/content/20/3/404.full.pdf+html
Images:
“Graffiti” [image]. (n.d.) Retrieved from:
https://i.vimeocdn.com/video/538769785_640.jpg
Berlin Wall graffiti [image]. (n.d). Retrieved from:
https://pixabay.com/p-693111/?no_redirect
I like how you chose two different forms of representation to convey information. The video really helped introduce the topic while the text provided me with a deeper understanding of your creative expression. I had never before made the connection between graffiti (or tagging) and social media profiles as a means to create and share one’s identity, but found it to be very interesting and insightful.
When examining these forms of self expression and identity within its context, it’s interesting to note how we can see some similarities in how the message is portrayed. Although each graffiti is different, you can get a sense that the artists are influenced and inspired by the community in which they find themselves in. As you said, the way we choose to express our identity is shaped and influenced by our own environment.
With the increased use of social media today, our identity is presented to a wide audience comprised of people we may or may not know personally. Therefore, this environment inevitably shapes how we present ourselves online. It has been argued however that social media facilitates the creation of a “false self” in order to meet the needs of popular culture. While I believe that social media can be beneficial by enabling individuals to freely express who they are, it can become problematic when people seek validation solely using their ideal self, thereby remaining untrue to their real self.
Great post, Rochelle. My research on comic books for this also pointed to cave drawings as the beginning of the genre — I guess it could be said about all representational visual art.