Recently some articles state that the word ‘‘selfie” has become one of the most annoying words. But I’d like to offer that maybe it is not so bad. The “selfie” is used to describe the self-taken photo, often from a smartphone. Women and men decorate their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts with these pictures, sometimes with puckered (翘起) lips or large smiles. In fact, the selfie has become so widely known that over 31 million photos on Instagram are taken with the selfie.
Let’s think about it. Someone takes about 10 selfies each time they do, and they only end up posting one or two of those. They pick the one that makes them look the best. Isn’t that beautiful? In that one picture, someone has given himself or herself confidence. Self-image is important. In society today, we are so often busy with what society tells us is perfect. But maybe, with that one selfie, we feel that we fit that bill. We feel handsome, beautiful, confident, smart, happy and content. For that moment, everything bad or terrible that has ever happened to us is erased, because that smile or that pucker is what gives us the determination to love ourselves.
I saw a spoken word poem recently and the young man said: If I ask you what you love, the answers will most likely roll off your tongue. You love to read. You love to write. You love birds, music, your mom, your brother, your sister, your daughter, your best friend, your dog. How long do you think you could go on and on before you said “I love myself”?
That statement hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve struggled with confidence all of my life. I still do. And in no way am I saying that taking a selfie is a gateway to that confidence. However, the selfie does deserve some credit for allowing individuals to express themselves. Pamela Rutledge agrees, stating, “There are many more photographs available now of real people than models.”
21. According to the writer, we live in a society where ________.
A. being perfect is highly valued B. selfie leads to success
C. one’s poor performance can be erased D. a good image decides one’s status
22. What Pamela said suggested that selfie ________.
A. causes models to be laid off B. is a way to attain confidence
C. makes one look like models D. reveals a more real world
23. The best title for the passage is ______.
A. The Value of Selfie B. The Origin of Selfie
C. Selfie Causes Bad Effects D. Selfie Creates Beauty