March 14, 2006

Virtual representation

Procrastinating as ever - as usual I need to do job stuff - I was trying to fix a profile on one of those internet virtual networks that I don't use (what else to do with your time!)

I started wondering about how we portray ourselves online, and if that is different from who we are in real life. For example, I have no clue if this blog is a correct reflection of who I am - even if I write about stuff that I'm occupied with in daily life.

Avatars are another weird habit. Mine is always some image of Lain, as you can see on the left. I don't know why. Just love the series. Mostly because it is so unbelievably vague, but also because of the way it is drawn. She always looks incredibly sad in every picture though. Maybe if people see avatars as some kind of reflection of themselves it could be interpreted as a representation of me?

Ah well, the profile I was trying to fix had me portrayed as psycho and depressed I think :)

2 comments:

thephoenixnyc said...

Ist an interesting thought. Sometime who I am online is exactly who I am, and other times not so much.

We all wear masks in life. This was true long before the Internet was around. Its not unusual that we wear masks online as well.

machiruda said...

Absolutely. In real life I think people can be different depending on the social groups they socialize with at any given time.

But on the internet, there is so much more opportunity for creating a mask which will not be easily found out of not being true. Just look at the trolls that haunt forums and such.
It's much easier to consciously create a different personality, I think.