Virtual Insanity? just kidding... Virtual Identity!

“Hall furthers our understanding of the ever-shifting nature of identity, pronouncing it ‘never unified or coherent,’ except when people wish to construct a ‘narrative of the self” (4). It was interesting to read the point of view that identity is never constant and is forever in flux because of different situations a person might be in. Whether it be through what type of media someone is trying to communicate, who the person is they are communicating with or what they need to say, it was an eye-opener and quite the “aha!” moment when I read this. It was definitely true because upon thinking about the different situations described I can think back to my correspondence via IM or email and envision how I spoke to a certain person or what the subject matter was that I spoke about. Lewis and Fabos hit the nail on the head when they stated that “…users adhere to a consistent presentation of themselves to acquaintances although they might experiment with different tones, voices, and subject content…” When you think back to different online interactions, an example you might come across where this is true is in regards to contacting someone via email. If you were to contact your professor about something you would have certain professionalism about your message and the way in which you say things. On the other hand, if you were perhaps contacting the officers of an organization that you all sit on the Executive Board for, then perhaps your tone might be a tad bit more relaxed than the previously stated email.

An interesting statement that I read on page 9 was “..technology is often thought to empower the less powerful…” This definitely can play into the initial statement that identity is “ever-shifting”. When people feel as though they can say things more freely, or with greater ease via the web and take advantage of that media, which could definitely be a way in which one’s identity has shifted in that moment, from being less powerful, to all of a sudden powerful and openly opinionated/out spoken. Because the use of media (such as email, IM, texting) acts like a sort of mask for the person utilizing it, it briefly allows the person wearing the mask to be whoever they want to be. And in that moment they don’t see any consequences or harm that can be done because they are doing/saying exactly what they wish they could in a face to face situation. I never thought about it until our reading, but I have to agree with Hall in the fact that people don’t have just one identity, it’s a constant flux of identity.