The internet is for the narcissistic

Ok, so condemning the world of internet personae might not be the best way to start an internet blog, but try to endure the hypocrisy for a moment.

I’m relatively new to the whole ‘THE INTERNETZ IS SRS BSNS!!1!!1!!’ scene. I started posting on a couple of forums about 8 months ago and now it’s fair to say I’m a bit of a regular (thanks to chronic procrastination & insomnia). Obviously, I’m hardly the omniscient ruler of /b/, but it’s been enough experience to notice a pattern.

By definition, creating any kind of internet profile is an attempt to display yourself in a certain way (with varying success at reflecting the reality). When I edit my Facebook, for example, I’ll admit that I deliberate over how my interests make me appear. It’s pathetic, in all honesty, but undeniable; an uncomfortable truth. My assertion is that all this pondering over our e-image is tantamount to narcissism. We’re preoccupied with ourselves. Even leaving profiles blank is a deliberate attempt to send out a certain message. And following the noble tradition of branding artists, writers, actors and poets as pompous poseurs, surely denizens of the internet community must suffer the same fate?

Hmm, I suppose this argument relies on an assumption though: that self-expression is fundamentally an act of self-love. Agreed?

I’ll explain myself: holding an opinion, even one of subservience or indecision, necessarily means that you’ve rejected all other possible approaches and selected your own. Thus holding an opinion is automatically means you’ve placed yourself above others with differing perspectives, as reason (subjective rationality, at least) has led you to judge those approaches to be inferior. To opine is to overween. You can appreciate and respect others’ verdicts but ultimately still believe yours to be the most righteous. Continuing this logical thread, voicing an opinion then emerges as no more than a veiled attempt to find vindication of one’s own intellectual rectitude. The World Wide Web has enabled the sharing of information like no invention before it and, inevitably, has also made it easier for everyone to ‘have their say’ and indulge their amour-propre.

Voicing an opinion is the glorification of self-belief and internet forums are, therefore, merely temples for narcissists.

Poke holes in my logic, if you like. After all, the internet’s all about self-vindication, right?