way2go! 6, Schulbuch

12 Unit 01 | Way to grow! Selfies are a big trend around the world and across all age groups. Look at the picture and discuss in pairs: 1 Where might you find a picture like this? 2 What does this selfie show? What doesn’t it show? 3 How do the people in the picture want to be seen? Are they successful in what they are trying to show? 4 Would you take a picture like this? 5 Why do people take selfies in general? READING 11 Read the article on why we take selfies. Some parts are missing. Choose the correct part (A–N) for each gap (1–11). There are two extra parts that you should not use. Write your answers in the boxes provided. The first one (0) has been done for you. 12 a M p. 4 2  prolific: produktiv, viel hervorbringend Our virtual selves Everyone takes selfies. It’s a part of our modern culture that we all participate in (0) . Most of the time we do it so we can post them onto social media, show everyone what we look like at our best and (1) . Selfies don’t seem to be affected by the standard social norms and barriers of ageism and coolism. Teens are obsessed, parents think it’s funny to get involved in the trend and celebrities were simply made for them. They seem to fit everyone to the point where selfies take up all our social media newsfeeds, but (2) ? A recent study, led by Petya Eckler, of the University of Strathclyde, says it isn’t. After speaking to several hundred female students, the team found that spending time on Facebook looking at selfies is (3) . Constantly looking at carefully edited photos is bound to have an impact on whoever’s browsing them, and it is not that surprising that it makes women (4) . But what the scientists in this study haven’t answered is why we’re taking selfies. We generally do it without thinking, but when we stop and ask ourselves why we’re actually doing it – what will we find? If I ask myself why I occasionally take selfies, I’d say it’s because it’s (5) with friends, or to show my friends what I’m doing. But that’s not really true. If I ask myself really honestly, I’d say it’s part of showing everyone ‘Brand Radhika’. This is what I look like and this is how I spend my time (obviously I’ll have chosen (6) ). Dr Terri Apter, psychology lecturer at Cambridge University, says taking selfies is all about people trying to figure out who they are and (7) . “We all like the idea of being in control of our image and getting attention, being noticed, being part of the culture,” says Dr Apter. When I speak to my most prolific 2 selfie-snapping friends, they all agree that (8) of their image. “It’s much easier to edit and control a selfie than a picture taken by someone else,” a friend tells me. “You can make it look better.” But the element of trying to “look better” isn’t just plain vanity – it’s about being noticed and accepted in society. We might take several selfies to pick the perfect one, but we don’t just leave it there; we post it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the rest of it. Dr Apter explains, “We’re social beings. We want to engage with other people.” But she then goes on to talk about the negative side: “There’s also a sense that if we’re not seen, then we’re invisible. That (9) .” Why we really take selfies: the ‘terrifying’ reasons explained Radhika Sanghani asked psychologists why we really bother taking selfies. The answers are worrying. Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv