Written vs. spoken, online vs. traditional

Writing gives you time to think about what you want to say before you put pen to paper (or fingers to the keyboard). And even when it is written you can take it back. In speech, if you say something you didn't want to or that was not the best sentence you ever constructed, you can't just go back and erase it. You will probably still come off as sounding nervous or inarticulate. In traditional classroom settings it is difficult for some people to put their best foot forward. Not only do you have to be in the height of fashion but you better have showered and you better smile at people and you better be ready to speak in front of tons of people if you are called on. Humans are so quick to judge if they find some flaw in your appearance or behavior. As Goffman says in his essay 'The Presentation of Self', "...observers can glean clues from his conduct and appearance which allows them to apply their previous experience with individuals roughly similar to the one before them or, more important, to apply untested stereotypes to him" (Beedles and Petracca 42). Even though you may have just stumbled over a few words when the professor asked you to introduce yourself, you have already made your first impression. And are undoubtedly being judged.

While it is true that the information one shares in an online class is completely dependent on how much one would like to reveal, I feel that most people will be themselves and perhaps even more open than they would in a traditional classroom setting. I am a shy person and I "clam up" when I have to speak in front of groups. Being in an online class allows me to show my personality with out worrying what impression I am making. While I am still making an impression, I don't have to see the reactions I am getting from other people. I know I'm not alone when I say that being self-conscious of others responses to me has held me back at some points. Facial expressions and body language have the ability to make and break relationships. Since I am not an outgoing person, sometimes my lack of words come off as snobbish or rude. In an online class where you don't have dozens of eyes staring at you while you speak or judging what you are wearing you feel more free to express yourself. Clearly sometimes not seeing people's expressions can actually lead to better communication!

As I am currently learning in my Language Science class, people use different parts of their brain to speak and to write. Obviously some people are better at one than another and sometimes feel more comfortable in a certain medium. An online class can help the inarticulate speaker to express themselves solely through the written word. Of course this leaves out expressions and gestures which are vital to communication... But I believe it depends on the context of the communication. If you are having a conversation with a friend and you are animated and using facial expressions they will know you are genuinely listening to them and enjoying the conversation too. But sometimes people are able to mask their true feelings with expressions and gestures and this leads to a false impression. So are the expressions that we give and the expressions that we give off really that different? In other words, can an online class mask who we are anymore than we already do in face-to-face situations?

Goffman makes the point that people can shape how others perceive them. In an online class it is completely possible that someone could create a different identity than their own. If an individual wants to be seen in a different light, or perhaps the truer version of themselves than they are in classes, than they are able to. " Society is organized on the principle that any individual who possesses certain social characteristics has a moral right to expect that others value and treat him in an appropriate way. Connected with this principle is a second, namely that an individual who implicitly or explicitly signifies that he has certain social characteristics ought in fact to be what he claims he is" (Beedles and Petracca 48). Therefore, individuals will represent their true selves in an online class and most people will expect that that individual is giving a true representation of themselves. Sometimes writing can be much more real and honest than speech.