UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS

Faculty of Arts and Letters

Final Grading Period

CA382 (COMMUNICATION THEORIES) P-CA2

Instructor: Tito R. Quiling Jr. May 21, 2019

Punzalan, Elijah Miguel S.

ARE PEOPLE REALLY NARCISSISTIC?

Narcissus, son of Cephissus, the river god, and the nymph, Liriope, was one of the noted hunters in Greek
mythology. Many fell in love with him since he was described as a very beautiful young man, but he only
showed them that they are not worthy of his attention. One time, he was in the woods, hunting. An
Ordead nymph named Echo saw him and fell in love with him in just seconds. Narcissus was able to
sense that someone was looking at him which led to Echo revealing herself to him. This resorted to
Narcissus pushing her and asking her to not disturb him anymore. The goddess of retribution and revenge,
Nemesis, heard about what happened and thought of punishing Narcissus due to his behaviour. She now
leads Narcissus to a pool of water where he can see an image of himself. As he stares at his reflection, he
doesn’t realize that it was just him all the while, but when he finally understood the things that are
currently happening, he felt pain that not everything that he loves can be materialized. Due to this, he
committed suicide. This Greek mythology is one great example of an episode entitled “Nosedive” under
the Black Mirror franchise that is currently being shown through a video streaming platform, Netflix.

Black Mirror is created by Charlie Brooker in 2011 which considers the relationship of humans and
technology. He said that the name means “the cold, shiny screens” of the devices that people are so
attached to, but it also gives us a hint that these technologies reflect the darkest elements of humanity
back to us. Some episodes are shot in an imaginative sense of the future world. The most disturbing
episodes were set in the present which manifests an uncomfortable setup since it sheds a light on what we
are currently living in today. “Nosedive” would have been believed what the world would look like if
Pinterest, Instagram and the likes took over it. Phones are always on hand, everyone rates the people they
interact with and the photos posted on their profiles on a rating scale of one to five stars. Each rating
affects the standing of the person. The higher the rating, the more perks that the person can be getting. On
the other hand, the lower the rating, the harder it is to keep yourself afloat. In Chapter 4 of understanding
Media, “The Gadget Lover: Narcissus as Narcosis,” McLuhan explains that technological innovations has
been an extension of our selves, with us not knowing it. He termed the Greek word narcosis as
“numbness.” Relating it to Narcissus, he was so numbed that he wasn’t able to recognize that he was just
looking at himself all the while. This also goes with the gadgets that this generation currently has. It
would be a mistake if we will think that these devices are just tools, but rather, they have now been a part
of our own selves and we fail to see our dependence in them. Through all the technological changes that
is currently happening around the environment, a surviving mechanism called autoamputation was
practiced by people through construction of idols. Meaning, we all become into these technologies that
we make them as an extension of our selves. By extension, McLuhan means that we are now knowingly
making our fascination with them.

However, when people are now awake of what happening, when they finally realize what is really going
on around them, then they are not numb to the true reality like Narcissus. The people will no longer have
to opportunity to “fall in love” with their extended selves. The most interesting thing about this group of
new technologies is that people are truly capable of having a full knowledge of these false technological
religion that people worship as idols. While people may have been numbed through it this breakthrough
of technology, the saving hope lies in being conscious for the very first time of this fact. McLuhan stated
also that there is no escape from the awareness of the increasing dependence on these technologies that
has become an extension of themselves. People can be in love, like Narcissus, in which they can become
so numb, rather than having a full awareness of what is really happening in the present situation. An
alternative would be to not worship these tools as idols. While it is entirely possible, it can also be as an
overwhelming shock to the system which makes him believe that it is really the price that has to be paid
for that enlightenment. Lastly, we can finally say that communication theories are very helpful in
developing and understanding the different aspects of communication. It also aims to develop enough
knowledge on how people communication with one another. These theories look for a grasp on the
understanding of the different capacities that shall be considered in order for communication to be
developed as channels that can successfully carry out and deliver the needed information. It has played a
vital role in the development of communication and the emerging technological innovations in this
generation.

References:

Gilbert, Sophie. “'Black Mirror' Is Back: 'Nosedive' Is a Sharp Satire About Social Media.” The Atlantic,
Atlantic Media Company, 16 Nov. 2016, www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/10/black-
mirror-nosedive-review-season-three-netflix/504668/.
Framke, Caroline. “Black Mirror's ‘Nosedive’ Is a Social Media Nightmare Dressed like a Pastel
Daydream.” Vox, Vox, 31 Oct. 2016, www.vox.com/culture/2016/10/21/13360144/black-mirror-season-
3-nosedive-recap-review.

Furlong, Matthew. “Matthew Furlong on Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7 for #UMRG.” Understanding Media, 31
Mar. 2013, understandingmediarg.wordpress.com/2013/04/01/matthew-furlong-on-chapters-4-5-6-
and-7-for-umrg/.