Hyper-documentation refers to the exhaustive and incessant¹ recording² of the details and events of one's life, particularly when these are shared on social media.

 

Hyper-documentation指详尽且不间断地记录生活中的各种细节和活动，尤其当这些细节被分享到社交媒体上的时候，我们译为“超级生活记录”。

 

It now seems truer than ever for many social media users (particularly, teenagers and young adults) that "If you're not on MySpace [and/or other social media sites], you don't exist." "Moreover, the pervasiveness³ of documentation throughout virtually every aspect of our daily lives has led us to start living for the documents, rather than the documents simply reflecting some aspect of our lives. Today, we must always behave as if our actions will be preserved forever and for all to see (because, most likely, they will). In the world of social media, there is no longer a "back stage". As far as we know, there is always an audience watching our every move with rapt attention, ready to applaud or jeer⁴ at any second.

 

现在，对很多社交媒体用户（尤其是青少年和年轻人）来说，“如果你不在社交媒体上，你就不存在”这句话比任何时候都能反映现实。此外，几乎涵盖我们日常生活方方面面的这种全方位记录已经让我们开始为了这些记录而活，而不是让记录简单反映我们生活的某个方面。如今，我们需要时刻注意自己的言行，就好像我们的行为会被永久保存且供大家“观赏”（因为，很有可能就会是这样）。在社交媒体的世界里，已经不再有什么“后台”。我们都知道，时刻会有观众饶有兴致地关注着我们的一言一行，随时准备鼓掌或加以嘲弄。