A Brief And Pointless Rant About The Use Of GIFs and Emojis

I Haz No Idea

Today in the New York Times, there was a trend piece about how The Kids Today are using GIFs (shocking!) in their smartphones, and how some companies are making fine bank from this.

Now, I personally don't have any great problem with this, or even the chuckle-worthy news aspect of a less than fresh trend; the Times is here to set history, more than be the first to act. Most digital conversation is, by its very nature, ephemeral and transitory, and the use of some looping image to describe your reaction is fine, honestly. If it starts creeping into communications that seem to be out of touch with its standing, well, that is what happens with new forms of technology. It takes a while for these things to shake out.

I'm also fine with, in all likelihood, being beyond the event horizon for the trend. I'm not a huge fan of everything that smartphones have done to the world in the first place, but railing against the tides is pointless, and the pros outweigh the cons. I've also made my peace, or at least I thought I had, with the ongoing devaluation of the writing skill and the reading muscle. The future is visual, and the age when the Internet was a word-driven medium is leaving, and fast.

But what goes beyond the pale? These pull quotes.

“I’m able to express these really complex emotions in the span of two seconds."

This, from the act of pulling a mass-produced GIF, one that in all likelihood, has been seen and used by the recipient.

Really complex emotions? No, no, a million times, no. Really complex emotions require the use of words that express these thoughts. Really complex emotions require really complex thoughts in the first place. You don't get to claim emotional depth from picking a freaking emoji or GIF. You just don't.

Annoyed enough yet? I wasn't. Adding fuel to the fire...

“I’m not that great with words. But if I find the perfect GIF, it nails it.”

Nails it. A five second loop of the Seinfeld cast dancing spastically was cited in the NYT story as being one of those GIFs that nails it.

Now, perhaps I'm being less than kind. Perhaps the unexamined life is best left, well, unexamined. Perhaps people who have made the choice not to spend their days and nights trying to bend words into phrases should not be mocked for finding some other way to get through the day.

And then again, well, no.

Use your spine-friendly imagery all you want. Take over the world with them. There's no point in pushing back against the ocean.

But please, for the love of your own humanity, and the sanity of my fellow word monkeys?

Do not claim the freaking high ground over your lack.

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