Paris 1798 vs Instagram 2015
By Sylvie Wharton
Image retrieved from http://xpanda.co.za/preventing-pick-pocket-theft-tips/
It may seem unlikely that comparisons could be drawn between
the crowds of 1798 Paris and the users of present day social media site
Instagram, however, although not physical I suggest that the offense of
pickpocket once committed in 18th century Paris has evolved and is still
being carried out within this online space.
With a suggested 300 million
active monthly users Instagram has created a large networked community the
density of which is not unlike that of 1798 Paris.
As outlined in Prouty (2009) when speaking of 1798 Paris
“this was the period in which the city’s traditional sins assume a mass and
anonymous form”. Much like in the era
Prouty is referencing, the large crowds of Paris created a level of anonymity,
the opportunity of which attracted those individuals with the interest of
certain things such as pickpocketing. It is possible that these acts, although they
may not be physical as they once were, are still occurring in virtual
spaces. A good example of the notion of
pickpocket applied through the use of Instagram is explored in Geoff’s
article which outlines an incident of an artist taking screenshots of various
Instagram users’ pictures and then going on to sell them for his own financial
gain.
Drawing from this article it would seem the artist as a user
of Instagram has enjoyed some level of anonymity to navigate through Instagram
unnoticed, which has then provided him the opportunity to not only view but to
also steal pictures from other users to use for himself.
Although completely different era’s and despite the many
differences between 1798 Paris society and our present day use of social media,
it seems some opportunities created by the existence of large crowds have not
changed and although evolved, the crime of pickpocket still benefits from the
afforded anonymity.
References
Geoff. (2015). WERSM We Are Social Media. Retrieved from http://wersm.com/no-your-instagram-photos-arent-yours-and-someone-else-can-sell-them-for-90000/
Prouty, R. (2009).
One-Way Street. Retrieved from http://www.onewaystreet.typepad.com/one_way_street/2009/10/a-turtle-on-a-leash.html
Smith, C. (2015).
Digital Marketing Stats/Strategy/Gadgets. Retrieved from http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/important-instagram-stats/
I never really thought of 1798-era Paris’ arcades and Instagram as having any connection, but the links you’ve made between the two are definitely there. It makes me wonder if, like Paris’ arcades, Instagram has been designed to allow only slow movement. Instagram users are like the flaneurs of Paris, for whom “it was fashionable to walk through the arcades with a turtle on a leash in order to enforce the slow pace really determined looking required” (Prouty, 2009). In Instagram, a user can only scroll so fast, and when the user reaches the end of the ‘page’, there’s a couple of moments when the next page loads, and the user is forced to wait and let it. Added to this is the commenting/liking system, and even Instagram’s usernames (as Instagram does not have the same attitude as, say, FaceBook does about presenting your ‘real life’ self as your Instagram account) and there is more than a few connections between those 18th century dandies and current day Instagram users.
ReplyDeleteREFERENCES
Prouty, R. (2009). Turtle on a Leash. Retrieved from http://www.onewaystreet.typepad.com/one_way_street/2009/10/a-turtle-on-a-leash.html