Showing: Attractions

The internet is often seen as a way for one to connect with acquaintances around the world, through virtual communication. With this in mind, the average distance between two connected people is now further than ever. How is one supposed to reintroduce authenticity to the digitized correspondences of the modern era? Here, the notion of a live connection, a digitized interaction that responds in real time, becomes highly appealing. The prospect of observing and communicating with a live human being has an air of authenticity and validity to it, despite being as digitized as ever. The creation of an experiential partner which reacts quickly to a wide array of inputs, maintaining conversations “just like the real thing” has become an obsession of computer scientists and psychologists alike.

Showing: Fantasmatic Scenes

What exactly is a “Fantasmatic” scene, anyway? Gleaned from the readings, this scene is one that exists outside of our comfort zones, promoting the kind of dialogue we didn’t know as necessary or desirable. Such scenes are comparable to that of a train wreck – a powerful display of revulsion and tragedy, a twisted spectacle that nevertheless draws our curiosity: one can’t help but look at it. Despite our initial aversion, we can’t help but be drawn into this spectacle, to observe it fully and satisfy our curiosity regarding its origins. In doing so, this scene which is supposedly diametrically opposed to our principles becomes a part of them; an “other” through which we define ourselves. Even if such images serve no other purpose than providing a low barrier which we can easily and triumphantly rise above, they are nevertheless an important part of our identity.

Showing: Impersonations

Across many of the social networking sites and Web 2.0 landmarks, one can observe the existence of the impersonation – a once-normal internet user who now dons the persona of an undeniably famous entity. The purpose of inhabiting this visage is not necessarily to escape into such roles, but to call critical attention to them. The impersonation does not reaffirm the persona, but rather challenges it – taking certain characteristics to the extreme (or extremely mundane) as a means of exposing the persona’s absurdity. The impersonation is not so much a character as a caricature.

Showing: Intensities

In massively multiplayer environments such as Second Life or World of Warcraft, role-playing becomes a common form of escapism. Naturally, there is also a backlash to such escapism, a reaction to the inauthentic nature of fake identities and staged experiences. There is the sense that the true self can only be realized once the staged identity falls apart: once one sheds their contextual trappings, information about the true self can emerge. All of the pretenses and false meaning are ultimately petty and insignificant compared to the study of what lies beneath. Only when the self has nothing left to show does it become truly deserving of observation. There are no identifiable characteristics with which one can easily dismiss an anonymous user’s motives: only the motive itself remains.