This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Trinity chapter.
The invention of Snapchat marked a new era of smartphone connectivity. No longer where users confined to sending (awkward) selfies via text, instead, we now live in a world of instant satisfaction. We can send horrific pictures that our friends can only see for second, or set stories containing our location alongside a video to prove it. What many argue is so great about snapchat is that we are no longer restricted to simple screen-to-screen contact because we can see the face of the person we are communicating with. But all “great” inventions come with a price….
Recently, I have noticed that Snapchat has been the cause of a lot more arguments than any other form of social media in the past. Why is this? With the inclusion of the “best friends” function, or the blatantly obvious face receivers make when opening up a new snap, people can completely distort the ways in which meaning can come from Snapchat. Girls complain to their boyfriends’ that they see them snapping other girls, while boys retort with a critique of their “top friends” stat, which contain more than one guy.
Snapchat was supposed to be an invention to bring us together, not tear us apart. I guess there really is no answer as to whether or not this society is better off snapping or not, but until we figure it out, let’s be conscious that there is so much more to this world than dissecting the meaning behind a five second selfie from a friend.