Selfe & Selfe - The Politics of the Interface

The Politics of the Interface

Cynthia L. Selfe and Richard J. Selfe, Jr.

Introduction

The authors begin their article by recounting a story that was told to them by a colleague. Upon returning from a trip to Mexico, an Indian-born resident alien professor was detained at the border and eventually fined, since he did not have the required documentation to enter the country. The authors view this incident as an example of imperialism and unjustness, and use it as an analogy for the politics of computer interfaces. “It is at the geopolitical borders of countries,” state the authors, “that the formations of social power, normally hidden, are laid embarrassingly bare—where power in its rawest form is exercised.” They go on to state that teachers who use computers to teach English often contribute to the establishment and maintenance of these sorts of borders in their own classrooms, characterizing this activity as “the systematic domination and marginalization of…women, non-whites, and individuals who speak languages other than English.” In their article, the authors hope to describe the political and ideological boundaries associated with computer interfaces, ways in which these boundaries are constructed along ideological axes, how borders in computer interfaces can be mapped as complex political landscapes, ways in which borders can prevent the circulation of individuals for political purposes, ways in which students and teachers can learn to see and alter these borders in productive ways, and tactics that teachers can use to enact a radical pedagogy of electronic borders.

Computers as Learning Environments: History and Motivation

In this section, the authors begin by discussing the increase of computer technology within the field of English composition instruction. Computer-supported learning environments have generally been viewed optimistically by teachers, as “places within which teachers and students can try to enact educational practices that are more democratic and less systematically oppressive.” The authors quote research, however, that demonstrates that minority students and those of lower socioeconomic status remain a “technological underclass”, and are the least likely to gain computer skills during their public schooling. In order to face this reality, instructors are encouraged to become both technology users and technology critics, reflecting on the cultural and ideological characteristics of their technology.

Mapping the Interface of Computers as Educational Space

The authors acknowledge the ambitiousness of such a project, and declare that they will focus specifically on computer interfaces. They go on to describe interfaces as “cultural maps” of computer systems, maps that have ideological underpinnings. Like all maps, they reflect the historical and social values of the culture that produced them. “Primary computer interfaces,” they state, “do not…provide direct evidence of different cultures and races that make up the American social complex, nor do they show much evidence of different linguistic groups or groups of differing economic status.” Instead, the authors argue that these interfaces tend to exhibit the “monoculturalism, capitalism, and phallologic thinking” of “male, white, middle-class, professional cultures associated with the military-industrial complex.”

Interfaces as Maps of Capitalism and Class Privilege

The authors present examples of how these maps are exclusive, in that they based on a world that middle- and upper-class users know and are comfortable within. This includes using analogies such as the desktop, folders, files, documents, telephones, fax machines, clocks, watches, and calendars. They suggest that alternative icons could be used to represent different worlds, such as a kitchen countertop, a mechanic’s workbench, or a fast-food restaurant. They describe the white pointer hand in the Macintosh interface as a semiotic message about race. They also identify clipart collections as including images that are predominantly white, professional, and office-oriented. The authors also an association between computer use and capitalism, as more and more people are subscribing to internet service providers in order to access online information.

Interfaces as Maps of Discursive Privilege

Primary interfaces, the authors assert, tend to reproduce the privileged position of standard English as the default language of choice. Computer users must often pay extra to purchase versions of software that have been produced in other languages. Using English versions of software forces students from other races and cultures to “submit to the colonial power of language and adopt English.” The authors go on to describe the fundamental level at which many computer systems are based on English, so that even non-English speakers much make use of English symbols, such as those contained in the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) character library.

Interfaces as Maps of Rationalism and Logocentric Privilege

In addition to the previously mentioned interface associations, the authors also believe these interfaces to be aligned with “values of rationality, hierarchy, and logocentrism characteristic of Western patriarchal cultures.” These values inform how information is represented and limit alternative possibilities. The article goes on to describe ways in which this hierarchical framework is actually limiting computer development. By incorporating methods of data representation such as “bricolage”, which refers to the construction of meaning through the arrangement and rearrangement of concrete materials in an intuitive rather than logical manner, the authors look forward to interfaces that exhibit the “epistemological pluralism” proposed by Turkle and Papert. Taken together, these interfaces “do violence to” minorities, imposing “a master narrative that resonates…with modern myths of technological progress.”

What to Do?

To respond to this phenomenon, the authors recommend that educators begin by locating themselves in relation to the map. Are we the cartographers creating the map, or the members of a dominant group that profits from it? We can then attempt to view the map from other vantage points to get a broader perspective. In this way, educators are better equipped to teach students how to view the interface “as an interested and partial map of our culture and as a linguistic contact zone that reveals power differentials.” Educators can also work with students and computer specialists to reimagine and redesign interfaces such that they avoid “disabling and devaluing” minorities. The article presents several tactics for accomplishing this.

Becoming Technology Critics as Well as Users

One tactic proposed for addressing this issue involves working to encourage a general level of critical awareness about technology issues among current teachers, and those planning to teach. As technological literacy and training is promoted within academia, it is important to also teach technological criticism, so that instructors think carefully about the implications of using technology in their classrooms.

Contributing to Technology Design

Humanist scholars and teachers should be involved in the practice of interface design. In some cases, this involvement can occur directly. However, since most instructors will not be directly involved in designing computer interfaces, they can influence the process by promoting collective professional action aimed at general technology design efforts. Online discussion forums can also be utilized in promoting this aim.

Reconceiving the Map of the Interface

Another strategy would be to involve composition teachers and students in a project to revise interfaces as texts. These projects can involve reconceiving interfaces according to a broad range of perspectives. New ideas for interfaces based on a range of “cultural, linguistic, and ideological perspectives” can be designed and expressed through either prose descriptions, drawings, or computer illustrations. This process could also include assembling libraries of icons and images that represent a diverse range of cultural values.

Toward a Critical Reading of Interfaces

The goal of eliminating oppression in our society represents a broad, ongoing challenge involving every aspect of life. For this reason, English teachers must work to bring these issues to light as they relate to computer interfaces. The article concludes with a quote from Winograd and Flores, who state that, having identified the ideological boundaries inherent in computer interfaces, we have a responsibility to “work towards unconcealment…and let our awareness guide our actions in creating and applying technology”.