We hear this advice all the time, but it quickly gets confusing. When are you not yourself? And how do you know when you’re being real versus performing for an audience? In this course, you’ll explore one of the biggest questions in the humanities: what does it mean to be a person in a world that constantly asks you to present yourself in public?

Today, students are expected to show up as recognizable “selves” across many spaces, from social media and group chats to classrooms, job interviews, and the workplace. This course examines the tension between authenticity and performance, asking how ideas of what is real, fake, natural, or normal shape our sense of identity and belonging.

A major focus of the course is how social media and digital platforms influence the way we see ourselves and others. You’ll explore how technology shapes self-presentation, personality, and visibility, and how online spaces blur the line between who we are and who we appear to be.

Along the way, you’ll experiment with different ways of expressing identity through creative and reflective assignments. In addition to short writing projects, you’ll create photo essays, short videos, and small experiments using social media platforms to think critically about self-presentation in everyday life.

This course is discussion-based, exploratory, and designed for students who are curious about identity, media, and the pressures of being “authentic” in public. No prior experience is required, just a willingness to reflect, experiment, and ask honest questions about what it means to be yourself.

This course is taught by: 

Associate Professor Stephen Groening, Chair of the UW Cinema & Media Studies Department 

To sign up for College Edge and reserve your spot in this course, click on the "register now" button below.