Labyrinth
The internet is a labyrinth. Dead ends and pathways. Infinite and alluring. It is inescapable. Its walls of knowledge towering overhead and casting their shadow on my face. To it, I am small. An insect with an insatiable hunger to learn and answer all of the questions that fill my mind. It is maddening; trying to make my way to its center; knowing my answer is out there but the journey seeming never ending. Distractions and rabbit holes to fall down at every angle. I must steel myself and resist their appeal, if not, I will become lost. I will forget why I even entered the labyrinth to begin with. I hold my question in my mind and turn back around, desperate to find the center. The answer that will make this journey worth it. I travel further and further in, just to reach wall after wall. Typing into the search bar new ways to phrase or approach my question, which unlock and reveal to me new spiraling corridors of articles, links, videos, images, and more questions. I am determined, though many before me have failed. New pathways that lead further away from the center continue appearing. Alluring, but my hunger outweighs their power. When I finally make my way to the center, the solution revealing itself before my eyes, I must set out again. Now drawn to all of the pathways I had missed and trapping myself in a never ending search. Eventually, I will grow tired and find that after traveling through these endless roads, I can close the window and return to my life on the outside of the labyrinth.
I love the narrative approach you took with this response! I definitely agree that the internet is like a labyrinth, especially when you take into account the mythology of the labyrinth and how it is constantly growing and evolving, and manipulates the minds of its victims to lure them down the wrong paths.
ReplyDeleteReading this, I too get stuck in the labyrinth. Our outcome changes with each person, yours was to find the center and others could just trying to get through the maze. I feel suck and sometimes forget what Im even looking for when I get so far into the websites.
ReplyDeleteThe labyrinth is a fabulous metaphor for the Internet! The urge to find the center, no matter the circumstances, is haunting and indefinitely true. It is maddening like you say, but would you say we enjoy this madness?
ReplyDeleteI loved your response, very insightful!
What I love about this metaphor is that you acknowledge that we search for things we don't realize we're looking for until we've found them. Backtracking, learning new things--the dizzying feeling of not quite remembering where you started. I also love that you separate the Internet from your own life which we've discussed in class as something that can be tricky to do or often overlooked. Art imitating life or life imitating art?
ReplyDeleteThe metaphor comparing the internet to a labyrinth was indeed very attractive! It exploits the feeling of getting lost among the multitude of information while seeking answers. I relate to the difficulty of fostering the desired single-mindedness and of ignoring all these other paths. How beautifully you have expressed the mix of frustration and fascination in wandering through the digital world.
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