Virtual Personality - Essay Example

Virtual Personality Introduction There is increasing use of virtual platforms for socialization among the modern generation. Different people have studied and observed the different ways in which people use virtual personality in these virtual worlds. The essay will describe the common theme, “Online personality” as developed in the three chapters. It will informatively explain how each author develops this theme. To achieve this, the essay will briefly explain the similarities and differences therein.

The essay will also denote the importance the defined similarities and differences to the common theme in the three chapters. The theme, online personality is common and generally runs through all the three articles. Online personality is how people behave, present, are seen, communicate, or generally how people interact with others via the internet. The three articles on concern have informatively presented this theme through how people connect and communicate in the social networks like Facebook and MySpace, how online created persons like avatar have represented real people, and how young people are using email and short hand messaging to communicate.

In the article, “Virtual Friendship and the New Narcissism,” Christine Rosen has considerably developed the theme, “online personality” by reasonably addressing the connection and communication modes as exhibited in the social networks like MySpace and Facebook. In her input, Christine has argued that the self-portrait, the profile, and the friends enlisted in great way reveal what we are, and present our personality to the world as we share it publicly. She observes that the social sites have really grown in the modern world.

Additionally she recognizes the fact that the information presented in these social sites is not explicitly true and that the real personality of the users could actually be very different. These are unlike the earlier paintings and pictures drawn and hung that represented the true personality of the owner. Social sites usage includes networking with friends, communicating, creating online friendship, and even acquiring job opportunities. However, she argues that those obsessed with these online technologies have greatly reduced their actual participation in the society and assumed different personalities as is characterized in the social sites.

Equally, the said list of online friends is logically not an actual number of friends in the real world (Texas Tech University et al 321). In the article, “Virtually Trustworthy,” Judith Donath has highlighted her input to the common theme in clarity. The fact that we have no physical body and no cues to identify or be identified with, gives us the choice on how to present our identity in virtual world. The use of avatars to represent humans is an absolute reproach to the actual personality.

She argues that although avatars have a close human resemblance, they lack communicative behaviors used in social interactions and therefore cannot adequately represent our state of mind or our intentions and thus they do not present our actual personality. She concludes that online-created behaviors may represent the same trustworthiness of a person or vice versa (Texas Tech University et al 329). In the article,” Thx for the IView! I Wud? 2 Work 4 U! ;),” Sara E. Needleman includes significant input to the common theme.

She argues that the way youngsters are communicating via short messages and emails, is putting their personality to question. She observes that a short message to a potential employer will only lead to a “not-so-serious” consideration even where the applicant was qualified. She concludes that unless stated otherwise, a formal communication promotes one personality and the reverse may be true (Texas Tech University et al 331). A close observation reveals that the three articles relate to each other.

Where the first article deals with how young people are wrongly presenting themselves in the social networks, the second article largely shows the improvements made to make the personal representation more realistic. In “Virtual Friendship and the New Narcissism” article users uses their solid photos, others photos or no photos to represent them but in the “Virtually Trustworthy” article, avatars with close human resemblance and feeling represent the users In both, “Thx for the IView! I Wud? 2 Work 4 U!

” and “Virtual Friendship” articles, the issue of how youngsters communicate online comes up. In all articles, the theme of personality manifests itself, the young generation is on the spotlight, and commitment to online communication and connections is condemned. However, where the “Virtually Trustworthy “ articles argues that avatars may represent a personal feeling if improved, “Virtual Friendship and the New Narcissism” article clearly disregards and personal representation in the social sites arguing that online personality is fake.

These similarities and differences are very important to the common theme. They develop and conclusively confirm that online personality is not real and thus suspect. Works Cited Texas Tech University. First-year writing: writing in the disciplines. New York: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2011. Print.