A slight digression to nowhere

One of my favorite writers is Erich Fromm, not necessarily because of his style, but because of his insight. A supposed-to-be rabbi who decided instead to become a Freudian analyst ended up becoming one of the most perceptive and prolific social psychologist of the 20th century. He was a man who not only loved people, he was concerned very intensely with their mental health and well-being. Like most "prophets" he was certainly more ignored than accepted, but that does nothing to diminish his relevance. Recently, I stumbled across a typical example of his insight that got me thinking. In a discussion of "alienation", he wrote

In the alienated form of pleasure nothing happens within me; I have consumed this or that; nothing is changed within myself, and all that is left are memories of what I have done. One of the most striking examples for this kind of pleasure consumption is the taking of snapshots, which has become one of the most significant leisure activities. The Kodak slogan, "You press the button, we do the rest," which since 1889 has helped so much to popularize photography all over the world, is symbolic. It is one of the earliest appeals to push-button power-feeling; you do nothing, you do not have to know anything, everything is done for you: all you have to do is to press the button. Indeed, the taking of snapshots has become one of the most significant expressions of alienated visual perception, of sheer consumption. The "tourist" with his camera is an outstanding symbol of an alienated relationship to the world. Being constantly occupied with taking pictures, actually he does not see anything at all, except through the intermediary of the camera. The cameras sees for him, and the outcome of his "pleasure" trip is a collection of snapshots, which are the substitute for an experience which he could have had, but did not have. (p137)

In my humble estimation, he hit the nail on the head, then; and I wonder what he'd have to say about selfies today. Whereas once we allowed the gadget to do our seeing of the world for us, all we see now, it seems ... and this through an intermediary ... is ourselves.

Is this because we think too much of ourselves, or is it perhaps because we have lost ourselves completely?

Reference
Fromm, Erich (1955) The Sane Society, Holt, New York