Perhaps I shouldn't assume either, as I'd be making an ass out of myself. You might say I'm extremely critical because I simply don't understand it. Simple honest truth there. And yes, I know the story of how Ferrett-sensei met his wife, but even Mrs. Ferrett admits they were very fortunate for things to have worked out.
I guess I'm curious about this Internet phenomenon because I am a history major. One of the things that I have learned as a history major is that the way we communicate shapes society, and therefore also shapes history. The Internet as a normal means of communication has only existed for maybe twelve years (I believe 1994 is when Internet really took off for public consumption). In that time the Internet has exploded beyond anyone's wildest imagination.
I remember when I was ten years old and I made my first screenname for AOL 2.0 (I still use that AIM name). The exciting thing for me was getting to play flight simulators with people across the globe. That was awesome. And now look where we are. There are now such things as email etiquette, forum etiquette, gaming etiquette, etc. This cheap, accessible and instant form of communication has shrunk our world into a global house.
Think about it. A science fiction comic book writer is mediating a dispute between a conservative Vietnamese Brimstone Baptist and a liberal polyamorous Scandinavian christian. What is their dispute about? Truth and lies. It's easy to say sticks and stones may break my bones, but words may never hurt me. But of course words hurt us. Especially when they are misquoted. I know I am misquoting people.
Why? Hmmm, I think an excellent writer like yourself would be able to grasp what I'm about to say. When we write fiction, do we always write exactly what our characters would say? Sure, as a writer, we choose the dialogue our characters use. But, the very fact that we write it means that we put our own taint, our own interpretation the characters.
If you take the present and look back with hindsight, then of course Internet dating is commonplace and normal. But step back twenty years ago and try to look with some foresight. It would have been so absurd to say you would fall in love with someone you've never met. Well, hell, it's still absurd today to say you would fall in love with someone you've never met.
In traditional Asian culture, Internet dating is backwards. For example, if I followed tradition to the letter, before I dated a girl I would call her father and mother and talk with them awhile so they could get to know me. But the Internet turns that upside down because you can meet a Russian girl across the globe thanks the miracle of web cam.
I took way more words than necessary to say that I am critical because I simply do not understand. Unless, I was devious. Then I would say that appearances can very deceiving.
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Date: 2006-01-13 02:06 pm (UTC)I guess I'm curious about this Internet phenomenon because I am a history major. One of the things that I have learned as a history major is that the way we communicate shapes society, and therefore also shapes history. The Internet as a normal means of communication has only existed for maybe twelve years (I believe 1994 is when Internet really took off for public consumption). In that time the Internet has exploded beyond anyone's wildest imagination.
I remember when I was ten years old and I made my first screenname for AOL 2.0 (I still use that AIM name). The exciting thing for me was getting to play flight simulators with people across the globe. That was awesome. And now look where we are. There are now such things as email etiquette, forum etiquette, gaming etiquette, etc. This cheap, accessible and instant form of communication has shrunk our world into a global house.
Think about it. A science fiction comic book writer is mediating a dispute between a conservative Vietnamese Brimstone Baptist and a liberal polyamorous Scandinavian christian. What is their dispute about? Truth and lies. It's easy to say sticks and stones may break my bones, but words may never hurt me. But of course words hurt us. Especially when they are misquoted. I know I am misquoting people.
Why? Hmmm, I think an excellent writer like yourself would be able to grasp what I'm about to say. When we write fiction, do we always write exactly what our characters would say? Sure, as a writer, we choose the dialogue our characters use. But, the very fact that we write it means that we put our own taint, our own interpretation the characters.
If you take the present and look back with hindsight, then of course Internet dating is commonplace and normal. But step back twenty years ago and try to look with some foresight. It would have been so absurd to say you would fall in love with someone you've never met. Well, hell, it's still absurd today to say you would fall in love with someone you've never met.
In traditional Asian culture, Internet dating is backwards. For example, if I followed tradition to the letter, before I dated a girl I would call her father and mother and talk with them awhile so they could get to know me. But the Internet turns that upside down because you can meet a Russian girl across the globe thanks the miracle of web cam.
I took way more words than necessary to say that I am critical because I simply do not understand. Unless, I was devious. Then I would say that appearances can very deceiving.