Composing the Self. Of Diaries and Lifelogs

Abstract

Can lifelogs and blogging be considered the digital counterpart of what used to be paper diaries and diary writing? This article examines three dimensions of this phenomenon in conjunction: the diary/lifelog as a cultural form or genre, as a material and technological object, and as cultural practice. Tracing the transformation of personal logs in the face of new digital technologies, it is argued that lifelogs and blogging are not outcomes but rather signifiers of cultural change, as they both reflect and construct new epistemologies. The current emergence of weblogs indicates a transformation of important cultural notions such as individual and collective, privacy and publicness, and memory and experience.