"My story"?

I find it interesting that this week, the subject content covers stories and places, and that Snapchat has its own feature called "My Story". This feature (as previously mentioned) allows every friend of a user to see a specific snap or series of snaps for up to 24 hours after originally sending it. The fact is, if someone employs a series of snaps to actually make a fictional story (perhaps solely for the sake of entertainment), the work they put into it considering the time limit, is usually high, and I believe that makes it all the more special. Whether making a fantasy story with inanimate objects or actually chronicling your own holiday or a tussle in the street, Snapchat allows a special connection between story teller and audience. "... Greeks understood that the way we tell a story shapes the way we see the world..." (Kuttainen, 2015).

The thing I find most intriguing about this concept is best summed up by this quote, "to 'exist', is to 'be perceived'?"(Chatwin, 1987). Perhaps the reason users of Snapchat or indeed any social network is to be perceived by others, perhaps it is a way to notify the rest of the world that you are still alive and enjoying your adventures without the formality of sending a postcard. Another example is that perhaps Snapchatting your holiday to your friends is a way of unintentionally framing a city or country as a certain type of place, for instance if one were to attend Carnivale in Rio, someone not worldly may then think of Brazil or indeed South America completely festive all year round. The same way that someone visiting the USA may be in the midst of a riot of sorts and showing their friends, someone may infer that the US is completely chaotic. Techcrunch has said “And now with Snapchat Stories, which enable users to post a string of photos or videos available to any of their friends for 24 hours, I’ve watched people become expert video storytellers” (Galant, 2015).

Sources:

Unknown, (2015). Image from: http://m.memegen.com/2nxtjm.jpg 

Kuttainen, V (2015). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narratives and the Making of Place, Lecture 5: Power. [PowerPoint Slides]. Retrieved from https://learnjcu.edu.au

Galant, G. (2015). We Forced our Company to Communicate Only Through Snapchat. Retrieved August 30, 2015 from: http://techcrunch.com/2015/07/11/a-new-users-guide-to-understanding-snapchat/

Chatwin, B. (1987). The Songlines. Retrieved on August 30, 2015 from: https://learnjcu.edu.au