By Aydan Johnstone
Maps are essential to our
existence – without maps we would have a generalized perception of the world. Maps
are a powerful influence on our perception of the world and offer great power
to those who need it to fulfill a certain purpose (Kuttainen, 2015). Maps allow
us to connect with people and place, and social networking sites such as
Facebook have formed maps that allow people and place to be connected like
never before.
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| Image Retrieved: DEVIANTART |
Facebook have created a map that
displays the location of all users that have surrendered their privacy of
location. Through this mapping network, users are able to view the precise
geographic location of another user through this location map. This virtual
form of mapping is a real-life version of the Marauder’s Map, which like
Facebook’s map, must be activated to view. The Marauder’s Map would require the
user to say “I solemnly swear I am up to no good” and then the map would show
the location of everyone within Hogwarts. Whereas Facebook would require users
to agree to surrender their location privacy, which will add you to their own virtual
version of the Marauder’s Map. It is astonishing to think that watching the movie
as a child I would think of how great it would be to have a Marauder’s Map. Ten
years later and until prompted by the readings this week, I have only just
realized that our society is slowly allowing Facebook to collate their own
version of the map for everyone to see.
Wood et al (2006) outlined that
all maps are selective: “Every map is a purposeful selection from everything
that is known, bent to the mapmaker’s ends. Every map serves a purpose. Every
map advances an interest”. Wood et al (2006) would identify them as special purpose maps, and not general purpose maps as Facebook’s Map serves a purpose of displaying the
location of all of its users, and similar to the Marauder’s Map it connects
people and place in a way that is purposeful to the user of the map. It is
clear that Facebook’s version of the Marauder’s Map is bent to the mapmaker’s
ends and is a subtle social media success that was collated as a larger map of
our individual purposes for knowing a person’s location.
References
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narratives and the Making of Place. Lecture 2: Power. Retrieved from http://learnjcu.edu.au
Unknown, A. (2015). Marauder's Map. Retrieved from: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Marauder's_Map
Wood, D., Kaiser, W. L., & Abramms, B. (2006). Seeing
through maps: Many ways to see the world. New Internationalist.
Image Reference
Honeyford, E. (2014). Marauders Map Cover. Retrieved from: http://pre07.deviantart.net/4d65/th/pre/f/2014/148/2/9/marauders_map_cover_by_whispers_at_221b-d7k1sul.jpg
The comparison that you made between the Marauder's Map from Harry Potter and Facebook's sense of mapping draws upon some interesting ideologies. Generally, it would be a very much anti-individualism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individualism) view to believe that we should all be 'mapped' by way of Facebook; this takes away our sense of freedom and individualism. This changes us all to be the same little dot on a map which can be intensely monitored.
ReplyDeleteWhile Facebook's mapping was a huge success in their own way, it was not a good success for the privacy of some. Cyberspace is similar to the Panopticon prison (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panopticon) (Barnes, 1997), where people are constantly monitored by others through their location or their actions. This is essentially the Marauder's Map. Remus Lupin was not wrong when he said that the map in the wrong hands could lead to some serious trouble (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban)!
References:
Barnes, G. (1997). Passage of the Flaneur.2. Raynbird.com. Retrieved 22 August 2015, from http://www.raynbird.com/essays/Passage_Flaneur.html
Wikipedia,. (2015). Individualism. Retrieved 22 August 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individualism
Wikipedia,. (2015). Panopticon. Retrieved 22 August 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panopticon
Interestingly the Marauders map was one of the first that sprung to mind during this weeks lecture too. The whole "only revealing the secrets to the right person thing" very much relates to what Woods was talking about with the individuality of maps and their purpose(. Further still, the relation between Facebook's location abilities and the MM's realtime location was another great connection. I certainly enjoyed reading your blog mate, not bad at all.
ReplyDeleteReferences
Wood, D. et al. (2006). Seeing Through Maps: Many Ways to See the World.Oxford, UK: New Internationalist Publications
Meant to add that (Woods,2006)
DeleteIt seems you cannot edit these comments to rectify mistakes. Wonder why these blogs aren't popular?