« Arguably the greatest cultural achievement of the Net has been to create a global network of closets and give the rest of the world a peek at what’s inside. Like no other medium before it, the Internet allows society’s marginal elements to find each other, the combined weight of their numbers revealing they’re not so marginal after all. In this sense, the World Wide Web functions as a self-help room for nerds, a cafeteria where the weirdos get the choice tables. Thanks to the web, we now know we’re not the only Christian Communists on the planet, or even, possibly, in our section of town. Just about any proclivity or persuasion finds expression on the web, from Jews Against Circumcision to Adult Babies to Force, the platform for pro-smoking activists.
Abnormal is the new normal, the white picket fence in danger of being battered beyond repair. The onus is now on Joe Average, whoever he is, to defend his shrinking domain. »
From « Un is In, asexuals, unschoolers, anarchists: thanks mainly to the Internet, abnormal is the new normal. You are what you aren’t. »
By Gabrielle Bauer in the February 2005 issue of Saturday Night.
that is a very nice way to put it. i don’t know who joe average is either, but this ability to link up with various other weirdos is, by far, my main reason for being here in blogland. hmmm… no offense!
Heh heh! I’ll take this as a compliment! ;-)
as it was intended:-)
But is there really a Joe Average out there? Everyone is striving to be unique and/or has something that defines them as unique. So isn’t the Net increasingly reflecting society?
It is great to be able to search out like minded people, but the interface still cannot replace sitting down and having a face-to-face conversation.
that’s the whole thing though – there are no joe normals. there is no mainstream america. a lot of people try to fit into that stereotype and pretend – but it alienates them the same way that it alienates the geeks and freaks – actually probably even more because it’s self-alienation.
there was a good post about how vlogs are the best tools to show that there is no such thing as the mainstream, all-american family. pull on one thread and unique individuals are revealed.
I agree with you that there is fundamentally no such thing as Joe Average. It’s even more true these days where everybody is encouraged to publicly share their « uniqueness » on reality shows or even blogs.
No one wants to be ordinary. It’s the new dreaded word. People are no longer scared to be called « freaks » but don’t call them « ordinary »! That kind of « uniqueness » is a bit superficial to me though. It’s more about exposing your quirkiness than your profound sense of feeling different (or outcast).
I think that there will always be people who « fit in » socially a lot easier than other people who will always feel like they stand out. The author of the article said: « And if Joe Average doesn’t make it, I can’t say I’ll lament his passing. I know all about Joe. Having spent 10 of my formative years in Montreal as a tall Jewish anglophone in a French Catholic school filled with small-boned gamines, I know about not fitting in. I know about feeling different – irremediably, constitutionally different. »
It seems like until very recently, Internet (and later on, the Web) mostly attracted people who deeply felt that difference – whether that difference was true or not. It’s becoming less and less the case as more people become familiar with the medium and the various publishing technologies. Then, as Frank said, the Internet becomes more representative of the various kinds of people in society.
I just loved that image of the weirdos sitting together at the cafeteria. Reminded me of Yulblog. ;-)
i’m not saying anyone actually is *average*. we’re all unique just like everybody else. but the difference online is that people who used to be isolated can sometimes find others like them. face to face is not always good for that. sure, you can find other black people, other women or other dwarves walking down the street, but how are you supposed to meet others who have a child that suffers from a rare disease, or who are into making lego bible movies?
an example? i am depressive, though not depressed right now. at the lowest of the low, years ago, it was a newsgroup that saved me. nobody around me could help me, and no shrink can *understand* if they haven’t gone through an episode or two of major depression. now mind you if you look at statistics, it seems joe average is possibly depressed, or will have depression in his lifetime. so will jane average. but depression is still (less and less so, thank the goddess) stigmatized and people are afraid to speak. even to help someone by saying « i know, i was there ». online, without face to face contact, the barriers can come down. i met friends there. people i will never meet face to face, but what else can you call people who prevent you from killing yourself? they saved me. and hopefully i helped others in turn.
perhaps not being face to face allows us to accept and exhibit our quirks in a way we would never dare to in society. well, some of us. there are liars everywhere, and people stuck in their shells everywhere, but if a good number just lets go of the mask, isn’t that hope? hope that we can lessen the amount of facade, not just online but everywhere, eventually? i’m not all that naive, but still, i like that tiny glimmer of hope.
i’m one of those who has always felt *outside* and who has often been told/shown she was. so i’ll keep hoping. and if i see joe average, i’ll throw a bag over his head, tie him up and vlog him to you all;-)
A note on the Montreal observation by the author. It was interesting coming here from a multi-cultural environment. Here people are relatively similar and there is some comfort in that. I wonder sometimes if that is why everyone is so nice.
Newgroups and online support groups are great for specific and more rare problems. They help my mother immensely through two difficult events. My point was that discourse seems generally limited in the post/comment format. Sometimes it works (like here) but too often is seems to be a monologue.