Our Sept. 7 class discussion was very thought-provoking. We used Nicholas Carr’s book The Shallows as a discussion springboard, and to be honest, I’m still struggling with some of the ideas that were raised. The concept of a private self and public self was brought to the forefront of society around the time of the American Revolution, when indentured servitude was made illegal, and it was also a key player in ending slavery, because it was finally legally recognized that there is a person with rights, a self, that exists outside of the “marketplace.” I think what I’m struggling with is my concept of the private self. To me, this means you with your thoughts and feelings and perceptions and likes and dislikes and fears and joys and moods and experiences – and how these all blend together into the essence of what you are. You know yourself in your own mind as nobody else ever can know you – to me that is the private self. But is your private self really your private self when you are at home with your family or friends, or anywhere that is not out in the public eye? You behave in certain ways even with those to whom you are closest and most private. I’m probably confusing myself more than necessary with this. But it seems to me that the “private self” and the “public self” are two extremes, and we have all kinds of other selves in between. One of Carr’s points was that we might be losing control over our private selves because of the way the Internet is “rewiring” our brains, and taking control of such a huge part of our lives. When I first read the book, I felt he was making a good case. But the more I thought about it, the more I didn’t quite buy his arguments, at least about losing the distinction between our public and private selves. Sure, we lose privacy, but I’m not sure that will cause us to lose our ability to maintain a disciplined public self. As Professor O’Malley pointed out, our society is based on the ability to separate our public from our private selves. I can’t quite envision the collapse of society over this. Or maybe I just don’t want to believe it – the idea of everyone being their private self in public is pretty frightening. In any case, it was a fascinating topic to discuss, and I’ll be continuing to ponder it.