With a tear-shaped foundation streak running down the centre of my face, I'm left feeling a mixture of inspired and giddy.
Sophie Kinsella's novel serves a perfect balance of laugh-out-loud and tear-jerking moments, leaving me a) eager to dip my toes deeper into the genre and b) hopeful for a sequel. While Kinsella splendidly probes the life of a twenty-something-year-old woman who longs to make it in London, the moralistic message regarding the pressures of social media and what goes on behind our overly edited and posed feeds has left me feeling reflective...
After a move to London, Katie Brenner - a born and bred West Country girl - dreams of a perfect Instagram-able life and a schedule filled with chic coffee dates, cocktail parties and shopping trips. Behind her Instagram feed, however, lies a different, more unfortunate reality; one that doesn't include eccentric friends and spontaneous outings. Instead, Katie forces herself to tolerate undesirable roommates, a teeny-tiny box room, and a boss who can't even remember her name. Nonetheless, Katie continues to hide her country accent and her rather un-glamorous reality in the hope of 'fitting in'.
No friends, no fun, no money and no guy, but a perfect Instagram feed.
Finally, she lucks out. Everything changes when her path crosses with Alex Astalis'. He may be tall, tattooed, dark and handsome, but he also happens to be her boss. Yikes! Despite plastering on a decadent facade of winged eye-liner in the hope of appearing chic and fit for London life, Mr. Astalis shows interest in Katie's personality, not her glossy Instagram feed.
This is what I'm talking about - the illusion of social media.
Society's fixation with creating an 'image' online has gotten out of hand and uproarious. Creating an illusion of happiness and perfection on social media has indeed become a modern trend among many, but why?. Over the years, the media's power and influence have rocketed, leaving us with a bombardment of visual and written pieces about physical and emotional expectations. However, this isn't just in magazines that we choose to read, but we unknowingly indulge in the deceptive world of the media when we pick up our phone or turn on the radio; all through the click of a button. Many people are left feeling like they need to be or act a certain way. Hence, we create an 'image'. If not that, we obsess over other people's feeds, falling into a dark pit of dissatisfaction.
Okay, so I'm not saying its wrong to post photos of your morning coffee and overly posed mirror selfies, not at all, but feeling pressurised to create a false 'image' of yourself and only publicise the positive parts of your life? That's not okay. And if you don't want to post primed and polished photographs of your favourite coffee shop, well, that's also okay. Creating an illusion to make yourself feel better about your hardships isn't going to solve anything. If anything, it'll create deeper and sorer wounds. You see, fakery is not medicinal. Staying true to yourself and focusing on what makes you laugh till your stomach aches, is, however, a trialled and tested cure.
For me, delving into the fictional life of Katie Brenner has touched upon a few open wounds. I came to realise that I have, in fact, been guilty of drowning in a pool of jealousy after scrolling through Instagram's many photos of bronzed and slender models. But what good is that? To be honest, it never occurred to me that people are unlikely to post a diverse range of photos that truly represent all aspects of their life. For instance, you may envy the life someone creates on social media, but you see, the images that you're being shown are only a small fraction of someone's life and are often planned and/or posed. As Kinsella demonstrates through the character of Demeter - the woman who has 'everything' - there is SO much more to someone than their social media may suggest, and as Katie Brenner begins to understand this reality, as did I.
Comparing yourself to other people's embellished photos is dangerous...you may want their body, their hair and their follower count, but they may want your personality, close-knit family unit and wit. Taking social media and 'image' seriously is a worthless chore and I recommend steering clear of the obsession. Here's what I think: post what makes you feel empowered, reflective and stronger, whether your feed is primed and polished or diversely assorted. And lastly, if you choose to use social media like I do, let it be a diary that you'll want to look back at in the future.
Who cares about who you could pretend to be online when you're already blessed with such uniqueness. Embrace that.
