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Irl : Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives by Chris Stedman (2020, Hardcover)

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Irl : Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives by Chris....

About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherAugsburg Fortress Publishers

ISBN-101506463517

ISBN-139781506463513

eBay Product ID (ePID)8050391493

Product Key Features

Book TitleIrl : Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives

Number of Pages260 Pages

LanguageEnglish

Publication Year2020

TopicWeb / Social Media, Popular Culture, Movements / Humanism

GenreComputers, Philosophy, Social Science

AuthorChris Stedman

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Weight11.2 Oz

Item Length9.2 in

Item Width6.2 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

LCCN2021-279770

Dewey Edition23

Reviews"Even without the pandemic, IRL would be a vital read, a thoughtful examination of our perpetually "logged on" existence, and a measured critique of the social systems that define our time online." --AV Club "Stedman remains accessible as he places himself into this technological yet jargon-free narrative; anyone looking to learn more about digital culture and its impact on society will be interested in and able to follow the concepts the author puts forth." --Library Journal "Stedman's humorous, thoughtful guide to how we can rehumanize the online world is needed more than ever." --America Magazine "A handy user's manual for leading an online life full of meaning and connection." --Kirkus Review "I am thankful for IRL. Chris Stedman is equal parts caring and indicting, and I hope this is a book that remains at the forefront of the discussion about our lives -- digital and otherwise -- for years to come." ---- Hanif Adburraqib, author of They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us and Go Ahead in the Rain "Chris Stedman's newest book is a strangely prescient and timely guide to being more real digitally as we enter an era where we will need to be. His idea of digital life as drag has entirely reoriented my sense of self-presentation there, even as this brilliant book does more than that. By turns playful and wise, he makes us legible to ourselves and each other in new ways." ---- Alexander Chee, author of How to Write an Autobiographical Novel and The Queen of the Night "At first, the premise of this book -- Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives -- was of exactly zero interest to me because I'm too shallow and morally bankrupt to read any book with belonging and meaning in the title. However, I was unexpectedly riveted by Chris Stedman's fascinating and surprising insights into authenticity both online and off, and I was especially moved by his vulnerability. I think so many people are going to relate to this work of memoir and cultural commentary, especially dismissive and judgmental people like me." ---- Augusten Burroughs, author of Running with Scissors and Dry "IRL is a brilliant and captivating meditation on the complexities of identity in the digital age. Stedman offers a refreshingly nuanced account of how digital spaces both satisfy and complicate the innate human need for community and recognition -- particularly for a generation that can no longer find such fulfillment in religion or other traditional spaces. IRL interrogates conventional binaries -- the real versus the fake, the fleeting versus the lasting -- and asks us to imagine our online lives as a frontier rich with possibility." ---- Meghan O'Gieblyn, author of Interior States "Chris Stedman's IRL is full of insight and honesty, but its greatest achievement lies in furthering our vocabulary of what it means to be real. IRL provides the side of the story many think pieces ignore: that for many of us, our digital lives were where we first learned to live most fully." ---- Garrard Conley, author of Boy Erased "Chris Stedman's IRL is a deft interrogation of how our increasingly digital lives have reshaped our sense of what's real, within ourselves and around us. Drawing from equally deep wells of research and reflection, Stedman probes and provokes our expectations of our changing world, and how we fit in it." ---- Sam Lansky, author of The Gilded Razor and Broken People, "Even without the pandemic, IRL would be a vital read, a thoughtful examination of our perpetually "logged on" existence, and a measured critique of the social systems that define our time online." --AV Club "Stedman remains accessible as he places himself into this technological yet jargon-free narrative; anyone looking to learn more about digital culture and its impact on society will be interested in and able to follow the concepts the author puts forth." --Library Journal "Stedman's humorous, thoughtful guide to how we can rehumanize the online world is needed more than ever." --America Magazine "A handy user's manual for leading an online life full of meaning and connection." --Kirkus Review "There's never been a better time for a book like IRL. It's a book that deals with elemental urges in plain, direct language. . . . There are dozens of vivid metaphors in the course of this book. . . . Odds are we're all going to be living online for the foreseeable future. Stedman's hard-won wisdom on the subject is well worth heeding." --Open Letters Review "Jam-packed with metaphors and beautifully described vignettes. . . . Stedman reminds us throughout IRLthat these digital lives, though different, aren't any less real than our offline ones, so they must be managed with care." --Lambda Literary "Sensitive, intelligent." --MEL Magazine "A must-read for anyone who's condemned the internet for creating huge social disconnect, and everyone whose lived experiences prove otherwise." --BuzzFeed Books "Stedman is at ease in the existential, both digitally and IRL (in real life). . . . IRLis a fascinating contribution to this all-important conversation." --Foreword Reviews "A book that will change the online (and offline) you." --Input Mag "Thoughtful, prescient, and hyper-relevant." --Killing the Buddha "In Stedman's new book, IRL, he cements his position as a powerful cultural critic and gifted author." --Loft Literary "IRLis a profound and necessary exploration of our identities online and how we interact with each other." --Largehearted Boy "[IRL] is erudite yet highly readable, a deeply confessional memoir that mixes philosophy with pop culture and media studies." --Rewire "In Stedman's latest work, the author turns his thoughtful yet thorough gaze upon the internet as a means of constructing purpose and identity. A hybrid of memoir, criticism, and reportage . . . all held together by Stedman's moments of bracing honesty. . . . Vital --The Believer "Honest and careful, . . . [Stedman] offers compelling new ways to think about our own engagement in the digital world, constantly pushing us to consider what is real. . . . Provocative, unlikely, and fascinating." --Vocation Matters "Tackles big questions about what it means to be authentic in a world where so much of our social interaction is now taking place online. The book goes to deep places, but it doesn't burden the reader with an overly serious tone. Instead, [Stedman] brings a lightness by blending memoir, interviews, and social science, all arranged in vignettes so that reading feels like scrolling through a carefully curated Instagram feed. . . . A glowing example of what it means to think relationally about our own lives and the lives of others." --The Society Pages "If you've ever wondered why you can't stop drunk-tweeting or stick to your commitment to delete Facebook from your phone, Stedman's book might help you feel better about--and maybe even better understand--your behavior." --Minneapolis City Pages "A perfect book for our Twitter-fingered, selfie-obsessed times." --MyTalk Minnesota, "Even without the pandemic, IRL would be a vital read, a thoughtful examination of our perpetually "logged on" existence, and a measured critique of the social systems that define our time online." -- AV Club "Stedman remains accessible as he places himself into this technological yet jargon-free narrative; anyone looking to learn more about digital culture and its impact on society will be interested in and able to follow the concepts the author puts forth." -- Library Journal "Stedman's humorous, thoughtful guide to how we can rehumanize the online world is needed more than ever." -- America Magazine "A handy user's manual for leading an online life full of meaning and connection." -- Kirkus Review "I am thankful for IRL . Chris Stedman is equal parts caring and indicting, and I hope this is a book that remains at the forefront of the discussion about our lives -- digital and otherwise -- for years to come." ---- Hanif Adburraqib, author of They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us and Go Ahead in the Rain "Chris Stedman's newest book is a strangely prescient and timely guide to being more real digitally as we enter an era where we will need to be. His idea of digital life as drag has entirely reoriented my sense of self-presentation there, even as this brilliant book does more than that. By turns playful and wise, he makes us legible to ourselves and each other in new ways." ---- Alexander Chee, author of How to Write an Autobiographical Novel and The Queen of the Night "At first, the premise of this book -- Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives -- was of exactly zero interest to me because I'm too shallow and morally bankrupt to read any book with belonging and meaning in the title. However, I was unexpectedly riveted by Chris Stedman's fascinating and surprising insights into authenticity both online and off, and I was especially moved by his vulnerability. I think so many people are going to relate to this work of memoir and cultural commentary, especially dismissive and judgmental people like me." ---- Augusten Burroughs, author of Running with Scissors and Dry " IRL is a brilliant and captivating meditation on the complexities of identity in the digital age. Stedman offers a refreshingly nuanced account of how digital spaces both satisfy and complicate the innate human need for community and recognition -- particularly for a generation that can no longer find such fulfillment in religion or other traditional spaces. IRL interrogates conventional binaries -- the real versus the fake, the fleeting versus the lasting -- and asks us to imagine our online lives as a frontier rich with possibility." ---- Meghan O'Gieblyn, author of Interior States "Chris Stedman's IRL is full of insight and honesty, but its greatest achievement lies in furthering our vocabulary of what it means to be real. IRL provides the side of the story many think pieces ignore: that for many of us, our digital lives were where we first learned to live most fully." ---- Garrard Conley, author of Boy Erased "Chris Stedman's IRL is a deft interrogation of how our increasingly digital lives have reshaped our sense of what's real, within ourselves and around us. Drawing from equally deep wells of research and reflection, Stedman probes and provokes our expectations of our changing world, and how we fit in it." ---- Sam Lansky, author of The Gilded Razor and Broken People, "This paperback edition of IRLincludes a new introduction, drawing into consideration how the coronavirus pandemic has driven many more personal interactions into the online world. For readers wondering how to balance life online and off, IRLprovides amiable and invaluable insight." --Shelf Awareness "Even without the pandemic, IRL would be a vital read, a thoughtful examination of our perpetually "logged on" existence, and a measured critique of the social systems that define our time online." --AV Club "Stedman remains accessible as he places himself into this technological yet jargon-free narrative; anyone looking to learn more about digital culture and its impact on society will be interested in and able to follow the concepts the author puts forth." --Library Journal "Stedman's humorous, thoughtful guide to how we can rehumanize the online world is needed more than ever." --America Magazine "A handy user's manual for leading an online life full of meaning and connection." --Kirkus Review "There's never been a better time for a book like IRL. It's a book that deals with elemental urges in plain, direct language. . . . There are dozens of vivid metaphors in the course of this book. . . . Odds are we're all going to be living online for the foreseeable future. Stedman's hard-won wisdom on the subject is well worth heeding." --Open Letters Review "Jam-packed with metaphors and beautifully described vignettes. . . . Stedman reminds us throughout IRLthat these digital lives, though different, aren't any less real than our offline ones, so they must be managed with care." --Lambda Literary "Sensitive, intelligent." --MEL Magazine "A must-read for anyone who's condemned the internet for creating huge social disconnect, and everyone whose lived experiences prove otherwise." --BuzzFeed Books "Stedman is at ease in the existential, both digitally and IRL (in real life). . . . IRLis a fascinating contribution to this all-important conversation." --Foreword Reviews "A book that will change the online (and offline) you." --Input Mag "Thoughtful, prescient, and hyper-relevant." --Killing the Buddha "In Stedman's new book, IRL, he cements his position as a powerful cultural critic and gifted author." --Loft Literary "IRLis a profound and necessary exploration of our identities online and how we interact with each other." --Largehearted Boy "[IRL] is erudite yet highly readable, a deeply confessional memoir that mixes philosophy with pop culture and media studies." --Rewire "In Stedman's latest work, the author turns his thoughtful yet thorough gaze upon the internet as a means of constructing purpose and identity. A hybrid of memoir, criticism, and reportage . . . all held together by Stedman's moments of bracing honesty. . . . Vital --The Believer "Honest and careful, . . . [Stedman] offers compelling new ways to think about our own engagement in the digital world, constantly pushing us to consider what is real. . . . Provocative, unlikely, and fascinating." --Vocation Matters "Tackles big questions about what it means to be authentic in a world where so much of our social interaction is now taking place online. The book goes to deep places, but it doesn't burden the reader with an overly serious tone. Instead, [Stedman] brings a lightness by blending memoir, interviews, and social science, all arranged in vignettes so that reading feels like scrolling through a carefully curated Instagram feed. . . . A glowing example of what it means to think relationally about our own lives and the lives of others." --The Society Pages

Dewey Decimal302.231

Table Of ContentIntroduction: Anxietweets Chapter 1: Mapping Our Digital Selves Chapter 2: Drafting Distance Chapter 3: Intimacy Granted Chapter 4: Inked Chapter 5: Never Alone, But Always by Ourselves Chapter 6: The Roles We Play Conclusion: The Velveteen Habit

SynopsisWhat Does ""IRL (In Real Life)"" Really Mean in Today's Digital Age? It's easy and reflexive to view our online presence as fake, to see the internet as a space we enter when we aren't living our real, offline lives. Yet so much of who we are and what we do now happens online, making it hard to know which parts of our lives are real. IRL, Chris Stedman's personal and searing exploration of authenticity in the digital age, shines a light on how age-old notions of realness--who we are and where we fit in the world--can be freshly understood in our increasingly online lives. Stedman offers a different way of seeing the supposed split between our online and offline selves: the internet and social media are new tools for understanding and expressing ourselves, and the not-always-graceful ways we use these tools can reveal new insights into far older human behaviors and desires. IRL invites readers to consider how we use the internet to fulfill the essential human need to feel real--a need many of us once met in institutions, but now seek to do on our own, online--as well as the ways we edit or curate ourselves for digital audiences. The digital search for meaning and belonging presents challenges, Stedman suggests, but also myriad opportunities to become more fully human. In the end, he makes a bold case for embracing realness in all of its uncertainty, online and off, even when it feels risky., What Does "IRL (In Real Life)" Really Mean in Today's Digital Age? It's easy and reflexive to view our online presence as fake, to see the internet as a space we enter when we aren't living our real, offline lives. Yet so much of who we are and what we do now happens online, making it hard to know which parts of our lives are real. IRL, Chris Stedman's personal and searing exploration of authenticity in the digital age, shines a light on how age-old notions of realness--who we are and where we fit in the world--can be freshly understood in our increasingly online lives. Stedman offers a different way of seeing the supposed split between our online and offline selves: the internet and social media are new tools for understanding and expressing ourselves, and the not-always-graceful ways we use these tools can reveal new insights into far older human behaviors and desires. IRL invites readers to consider how we use the internet to fulfill the essential human need to feel real--a need many of us once met in institutions, but now seek to do on our own, online--as well as the ways we edit or curate ourselves for digital audiences. The digital search for meaning and belonging presents challenges, Stedman suggests, but also myriad opportunities to become more fully human. In the end, he makes a bold case for embracing realness in all of its uncertainty, online and off, even when it feels risky., It's easy to view our online presence as fake, to see the internet as a space we enter when we aren't living our real, offline lives. IRL, Chris Stedman's insightful exploration of authenticity in the digital age, shines a light on how age-old notions of realness can be freshly understood in our online lives., It's easy and reflexive to view our online presence as fake, to see the internet as a space we enter when we aren't living our real, offline lives. And yet, so much of who we are and what we do now happens online. Social media is becoming less somewhere we go and more a place in which we are simply always present. All of it makes it hard to know which parts of our lives are real. IRL, Chris Stedman's personal and searing exploration of authenticity in the digital age, shines a light on how age-old notions of realness can be freshly understood in our new online lives. Stedman argues for a different way of seeing the supposed split between our online and offline selves: far from being unnatural, the internet is simply one more tool for understanding and expressing ourselves, and the way we use it can reveal new insights into far older human behaviors and desires. IRL invites readers to consider the ways they edit or curate themselves for digital audiences, and in the end makes a bold case for authenticity, even when it feels risky.

LC Classification NumberB105.A8S74 2020