Blog Post #2

As I have discussed in my previous assignments, I think that emojis can only be used effectively to supplement language. I do not believe that emojis possess the ability to successfully and effectively communicate ideas, emotions, and etc. on their own. Emojis were invented to help people communicate more quickly and therefore more efficiently. However, emojis can be very misleading and therefore can actually impede or prevent communication. When we were discussing the meanings of several different emojis in class, it became clear that emojis are not as simple, universal, and easy to understand as many people originally might have thought.

Although I acknowledge that language by itself is not perfect and it does not always sufficiently communicate human emotions and ideas, I do believe that it is significantly more useful than emojis. One advantage that emojis have over language is that they are far more universal. Although, it can be argued that emojis are not as universal as people might think: people who do not have access to smartphones or the internet may not find emojis to be helpful in expressing or interpreting human emotions.

In Xu Bing’s Book from the Ground, there are some passages, like the one on page 43, that should not be considered “universal.” The emojis on page 43 refer to specific business chains and brands like Apple and MoMA, Broadway shows like The Lion King and The Phantom of the Opera, as well as other things that are not necessarily recognizable to people who do not have access to technology like the internet and smartphones. Also, there are only three emojis on page 43 that seem to express any human emotion: there is a thumbs up emoji, a smiling face, and a seemingly embarrassed face. These are incredibly superficial emojis expressing superficial emotions. Although the reader is able to gain a simplistic understanding of how the protagonist is feeling, emojis cannot accurately describe or express complex, beautiful human emotions. Page 43 of Xu Bing’s book is a perfect example of how dry and boring emoji literature can be. I firmly believe that using language–not emojis– increases the likelihood that we will be able to properly express the depth and complexities of human emotions. Language feeds the soul and intrigues and interests the reader. Language can be thought-provoking and moving; I do not believe that emojis have the potential to be any of those things– not on the same level as language.

There are far more words than there are emojis, and although many would argue that most words are just synonyms for a basic word or expression– especially in relation to human emotions– I would argue that each “synonym” actually carries its own slightly different and equally important meaning; some words have slightly different connotations than other words even if their meanings are similar. Language offers a wide range of specificities and details that emojis simply cannot provide. A reader is more easily able to interpret and “close read” language than emojis. When we were reading Book from the Ground, I had an extremely difficult time gaining a coherent understanding of what the emojis were expressing let alone being able to “close read” and analyze the text! Perhaps I am simply not open-minded enough to enjoy or appreciate emojis as literature, but I really did not feel like I got anything out of Book from the Ground. I think the simplicity of the plot and the characters also validates my point that it is impossible to sufficiently express and represent complex and interesting human emotions through emojis. I did not feel any connection whatsoever to the main character in Book from the Ground. I did not feel emotionally attached because Bing could not adequately characterize the protagonist through emojis.

I do think that emoji literature is valuable in its own sense, but it is definitely not my favorite and I do not feel that it allows for the depth and complexity that traditional literature does. However, many people may prefer emoji literature because it is more simplistic and therefore easier to understand– I would argue that emoji literature is, in fact, harder to understand. I think language is far more effective for communicating and expressing human emotions.