Internet Identity Experiences in Turkles Article Essays -- Web Cybers

Internet Identity Experiences in Turkle's Article In Turkle's article "Identity in the Age of the Internet," she questions "Why grant such superior status to the self that has the body, when the selves that don't have bodies are able to have different kinds of experiences?" Turkle gives many great details and examples of the things that can happen when people are allowed to express themselves as any character that they wish which enables them to have experiences that may be different then the ones from their everyday life. In addition Dale Spender examines in her article "Gender Bending," how men and women are viewed differently online as well as offline. These articles arises the thought of how might Spender answer the question brought on by Turkle. So I came up with an idea of what Spender's answer to this might be. When Turkle questions the fact that online experiences can be so much more rewarding then offline experiences, she is talking about several different examples. One example of an experience relates to "Living in the Mud ," and the possibilities of role playing on the internet through online games such as, Trek MUSE, and LambdaMOO. In these games you can chose to be anyone you wish whether it be male, female, a thing or even a graphical icon such as Barbie, or the Mighty Morphon Power Ranger. No one can know who you are or what your true identity is. What is so interesting about these games is that you can be a character who resembles you very similarly, or someone whom is not like you in any way shape or form. Possibilities can vary to as many ways as you can think up. Sherry Turkle feels that the computer is more then just a tool, that it is a "second self". She also states that the, "Internet, links millions... ...rd horror stories about people meeting others on the net whom they thought were one way that they described themselves to be but in actuality were nothing of the sort. I find that to be very disturbing and in some cases life threatening. I do agree with the fact that there are opportunities to have new experiences on line, but I do feel that if this is going to be made possible and continue on that their does need to be more screening than there is currently. I as well as others would feel much more safe and open if users knew more true information then is being given out at the current time. Works Cited Turkle, Sherry, "Identity in the Age of the Internet." Composing Cyberspace. ed. Richard Holeton. San Francisco: McGraw Hill, 1998, 5-11. Spender, Dale, "Gender Bending." Composing Cyberspace. ed. Richard Holeton. San Francisco: McGraw Hill, 1998, 69-75.