Mobile Intimacies
In her book, Archambault mentions a young woman named Mimi who uses her mobile device to have multiple relationships and suitors, even though she has been living with one man for three years. One thing that Archambault’s reading focused on was how mobile communications have built these practices. “mobile communication has transformed courtship practices by making pursuit of romance more direct and less mediated”. Archambault also focused on the fact that these mobile intimacies allow “young women to play a more active role” in their relationships. Traditionally, this has not always been the case in most places around the world. With the rise of mobile communications, we begin to see a shift from the traditional dynamic for the man to be the first to make a move.
Generally, intimacy is a sense of closeness. Unlike the examples Archambault provided, it is integrated into my everyday life as well. Intimacy can account for any type of relationship and it is not limited to just a romantic one. For example, people could have close friendships or other relationships. Concerning mobile intimacy, I think that many online spaces I encounter in my day to day life are intimate spaces. One example of this would be my Facebook feed. I personally think that It’s an intimate place because most of the people or pages I follow share and post very personal things, which increases a sense of familiarity and friendship. Another online intimate space is my private Instagram account. I only let certain people follow me and vice versa, which ultimately creates a tight knit and private online atmosphere.
Another way intimacy integrates into my daily life is through texting my friends. I am a person who has a very small and tight knit circle of friends. I don’t call or text many people, so I have a strong sense of intimacy amongst my friends that I choose to keep in contact with. I believe that digital life puts us in contact with hundred of people every day, but the people we actually stay in touch with help form our personal digital intimate environments.
