Commentary on Internet

Yanan Niu
2010-6-9
Assignment#2

As the birth of Internet, humans’ social interaction becomes more and more convenient and efficient than before. Nowadays, software houses have produced many interaction tools, servicing the users for communications. Compared the old medias, such as newspaper and TV, Internet clearly has too more benefits. That is the reason why people would like to use Internet in making friends, having fun, studying, even doing business. However, at the same time when people are enjoying the advantages that Internet brings to us, it also harms humans to some extent.
According to the article Isolated by the Internet, the writer Clifford Stoll discussed how does Internet influence people’s social lives. He thought that the relationship with families and friends had been hindered by high technology for many years. In his essay, some people thought being on internet had developed their social positions. They thought through internet, they could make more friends and consolidate friendships. Yet, Clifford Stoll deemed that this special way of communication would stunt human’s normal ability to socialize. Moreover, he had listed some clearly examples to state his points. In my opinion, I don’t really agree with him. Although it seems that internet had affected human in social interaction, I don’t think this is all internet’s fault. For some people, they are of few words and shy to speak. Internet gives them a chance to be a person, who they want to be and hard to be in reality; it gives people a chance to change themselves and practice. I think it is a kind of way to blend into social group and fit in. It is a good way to release pressures and make people to be honest. However, the more important thing is that relying on internet can easily lead to people distort personalities. That is why we have seen so many examples in a similar negative situation. I think it depends on different people’s self-control ability and ability of resolving truth and false mostly. Just as Robert Kraut and Vikki Lundermark concluded that people should to be responsible mostly for making themselves involve into the results that Internet may bring to human rather than Internet itself. In the article “Who Am We?”, which was written by Sherry Turkle, she listed many examples as Stoll did. Talking about how has the Internet changed the way we look at the self, she discussed, “Windows have become a powerful metaphor for thinking about the self as a multiple, distributed system, the self is no longer simple playing different roles in different settings at different times. The life practice of windows is that of a decentered self that exists in many worlds, that plays many roles at the same time…Now real life itself may be, just one more window” (Turkle p. 676). She thought for many people, the virtual world became as real as our daily life because they did almost everything on Internet, including studying, shopping, entertainment, even working and doing business. Internet had given people many benefits and gain in reality so it became closer and closer to users, at least no longer a world completely in mind. This thought made me interested in; to some extent, I agree and admit the advantages and changes of property of Internet. However, I feel sad about the people like Stewart, who was a college student Turkle had illustrated in her article. It was hardly for him to handle the problem of social interaction and fitting-in in the reality. The reason was he has two identities. In the illusory game world, he was Achilles. However, as Turkle puts it, “he let his MUD friends call him his real name because he wanted to feel that his real life existed between his persona and real identity; he wanted make MUD as a real part of his life”. Yet, that didn’t help him at all. “He still lived life in a small compass” (Turkle p. 680). Yes, compared what Turkle had said, Stewart was playing two different roles at the same time, however, it seems that was not a good thing. Different reactions in different worlds made his disposition become even more extreme. Different roles made him even more confused and lonely in life. Therefore, personally I don’t agree the author’s thought about “real life is just one more window”. I think that her opinion should be discussed in different groups of people and I believe that will make much more sense.
Personally, I won’t treat real life as just a window in virtual world because nowadays, facial expressions, body languages, face-to-face conversations and really participated in life what are ignored by humans are exactly more and more important. I enjoy go outside, drinking juice and chatting with my best friends; I enjoy travel, seeing beautiful scenery in nature; I enjoy find books that I want, spending a whole afternoon in library and so on. I won’t treat real life as a mere window and I think it is worth to hold my opinion rather than pay all my attention, relying on Internet.