Aesthetics and Narrative

If the right to speech is empowerment, as Tuan says (1991), then Tumblr surely gives the space for users to be empowered by the creation of their own narrative. When we speak of narratives we do not merely mean the written word, we are also referring to pictures, and on Tumblr the pictures users post create a personal narrative. The narrative on Tumblr has been dubbed something else however.



Aesthetic on Tumblr is a blog’s particular look and mood which they project through the posts they make, the comments they leave, the posts they reblog and the themes they use, amongst other things. Each blog has a different aesthetic, some being very strong, as seen in teen cat’s blog http://teen-cat.tumblr.com/ , and others are quite vague, however all blogs create their narrative and in doing so, betray a part of themselves, whether it be true or only a version of the truth.


For some blogs, the aesthetic is actually more of a way of making sense of the world and themselves; an ontological quest (Kuttainen, 2015). The weaker aesthetic in this case actually presents itself in a strong way. It portrays their human curiosity and intrigue, as well as their uncertainty. The interesting thing to note with this type of narrative is how ‘in progress’ it feels, like a book constructing itself.

Personal narratives are so easily identifiable on Tumblr through the defined space which each user is given to create their aesthetic. It can be said that each factor influences each other factor. For example, Tumblr users are given the space to create their aesthetic, which in turn brands their space as their specific place. Narrative online however, as most aspects of the online life, is merely a projection of an identity and whilst it says a lot about the person creating the narrative, it does not tell a wholly real picture.

Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, narratives and making of place, Lecture 5: Stories and Places. Retrieved from http://learnjcu.edu.au 

Tuan, Y. (1991). Language and the making of place: a narrative-descriptive approach. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 81(4), 684-696. Retrieved fromwww.learnjcu.jcu.edu.au

Source removed. Picture retrieved from: https://41.media.tumblr.com/571e5d2abce65685e070e29a734968b2/tumblr_n9mjb3PXya1t1p4l8o1_500.png