Sex and Consumerism

1602 Words4 Pages

My generation, specifically Generation Y, has grown up with computers. Whether it was DOS or Windows or Macintosh, my peers have a knack for the virtual interface. Our parents and grandparents do not understand it. They fumble uncomfortably with their cell phones and become frustrated by the oncoming new media of video games (especially when my brothers and I would rather play Halo 3 than Pac-Man with my dad). Whereas we effortlessly communicate with each other like each button is an extra organic limb on our body. It is as if technology was in our blood, but not theirs. However, having a life with technology is much different than having a life in technology. Once upon a time it was sitting in front of N64 playing Golden Eye with four friends. Now, it is socializing at a virtual party under the username, PatrickBateman, trying to see if you can have cybersex afterwards with, hopefully, a female avatar. The “game” has changed. The rules of the “game” are no longer confined to space or law or time. We have broken that mold. We once placed ourselves in imaginary worlds of stories and books playing the hero. Nowadays, we live the imaginary world with an avatar that may or may not look similar to an individual’s actual appearance. It is no longer a “game.” It has become real. So much so, that even the virtual world affects the actual world by social constructions, property trading, and information consumption. This introduction is only to provide the suggestion that games and life have become meshed over the past century through technological advancements. A combination of social networks, new technology, and readily accessible information propel us into this conversation about the usage of the virtual world. Defined as a MMORPG ... ... middle of paper ... ...in available in our culture’s media, whether it be on television, in the theatre, or online. Shopping centers never seem to be on the decline, even amidst our country’s recession. In the same way, porn sales are greater than the sales of all professional sports combined. These examples only recognize the desires of our society. This is not to say that sex and consumerism has not been around before, rather the virtual world only provides a new avenue for these commodities to flourish and its growth is strikingly apparent. Works Cited Curtis, Debra. "Commodities and Sexual Subjectivities: A Look at Capitalism and Its Desires." Cultural Anthropology 19 (2004): 95-121. Lastowka, F. G., and Daniel Hunter. "The Laws of the Virtual World." California Law Review 92 (2004): 1-73. Second Life. Computer software. Second Life. 15 June 2009 .

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