Ecstatic parenting: the ‘shareveillant’ and archival subject and the production of the self in the digital age

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article situates the recent concept of ‘sharenting’ in relation to the literature on the ‘parenting culture’. Jean Baudrillard’s notion of the ecstatic is then introduced and used as a lens through which to understand and critique this contemporary parenting culture. The discussion that follows covers: (1) ways in which social media (Facebook in particular) contribute to the development of new iterations of the individual subject (specifically, the archival subject and the shareveillant subject) and their relationship to parenting culture; (2) the congruence between those forms of subjectivity and Baudrillard’s notion of the ecstatic; and (3) the resulting notion of ecstatic parenting.