Quote:
|
The avatar is a mask. There is always the need for a mask in personal relations. People that do not use the Internet much, often comment that an avatar is like a carnival mask that protects the real identity and allows behavior otherwise not easy to practice, because such behavior can be in contrast with the image of the self that one projects in real life and wishes to protect. People more familiar with personal interaction on the Internet, comment that on the Internet there is less need for a heavy mask as time is not an independent variable and the communication channel is forcibly much narrower: there is time for more controlled and deliberate actions.
|
You've brought up a lot of interesting points, but one of the things I find kind of fascinating is the avatar question. Another forum that I participate in has a lot of people using their own photograph as an avatar, without any regard to privacy issues. I can't do that; that's way out of my comfort zone. On the other hand, I feel this need to be true to the real me in some kind of way, even if in caricature. (Hopefully the real me doesn't come across as male as often as my avatar does, though!) But short silverish hair, glasses, casual clothes -- that's all real. On the other hand, I sometimes use my cat as an avatar on the other forums, so you can take all of this with a grain of salt!
