December 31, 2021

  • An Audience of One

    It's a rare privilege, to be able to dance as if no one is watching. To not be self-conscious, to launch your final shot in the game as if fans aren't screaming and cheering to distract or encourage you. We should all have the ability to conduct our lives unbothered by the antics of others, right?

    However, on social media, having an audience of one (yourself) is an indication that you may just be doing something wrong. I've been considering lately what it means not to have an audience, and what one should do as a result.

    On the one hand, look, living in a way to be commended by history will always leave many people behind. Being anti-slavery in, say, 1850 wasn't a great public opinion to have in most states. Having a small audience can be a compliment, that you are a lead user, adopting the tools and techniques of the future ahead of time and...

    ...but let's be honest, friend, it may be unlikely that you or I are either technological marvels or ideological martyrs. At a certain point, shouldn't one go where the people are? Not all the people, but some people? If one's preferred discourse and presentation falls on deaf ears, isn't that an indication that the ears or the presentation are wrong?

    I'm not sure, honestly. I've contemplated withdrawing from social media for 2022: there's an argument that social media itself has so warped our idea of an audience that we can only find our voice by leaving it. But I couldn't resist getting my page re-opened (thanks Eugenia!) and launching one more last return, even if this ventures on the tragicomic, haha. Keep in mind that if I lose comment access, you can email me at xangagreek at the usual place if you need to.