MySpace,YourSpace

With the arrival of networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, the realm of the Internet just got a whole lot more personal. Armed with an e-mail address and password, one can submerge himself in a phenomenon that enables two-second judgments of any person from the comfort of a computer chair. Judgments of a certain 18-year-old Floridian female, for example.

A scan of profile pictures shows her to be a rosy-cheeked young woman, indecisive about hair color and seeming to prefer the left side of her face. Photos of being pushed in shopping carts or with her long, black hair spiked high in the air portray her as adventurous with little care of others’ opinions. Outfits, hairstyles, and accessories tend to be of the “Punk Rock” persuasion, full of contrasting colors and silver studs, and present her as someone who enjoys attention and differences. Four of the eleven pictures are black-and-white and artistically angled which suggests she has at least some knowledge of photography.

The main profile also contains artwork, and while it is not evident whether it was created by her, it is obvious she has a taste for bright colors and organic shapes. The fluid movement of lines in the semi-abstract pictures could suggest her own dislike for rigid confines. A majority of the pieces contain references to drugs including marijuana, acid, and magic mushrooms. Her friend is shown posing next to a refrigerator with magnetic letters spelling “BLUNTS,” and a recent mood update shows her feeling “high.” These instances again show that she is unconcerned with societal opinions and suggest that she is in favor of the legalization of marijuana.

The accessibility of MySpace allows millions of perusers to visit and judge the sites of users worldwide, learning about their lives without those pesky, face-to-face conversations. In turn, the users choose how to portray themselves in what they consider to be the best possible manner.