Subversion, sexuality and the virtual self

By Jude Elund

Subjects: Technological innovations, Sex role in mass media, Human-computer interaction, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Media Studies, Online identities, Shared virtual environments, Virtual reality, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Gender Studies, Social aspects, Avatars (Virtual reality)

Description: "This book is about the construction of identity in digitised and virtual screen environments. It investigates the phenomenon of three-dimensional virtual worlds in relation to our physical selves. Using four regions of Second Life as a foundation of analysis, this book explores the issues surrounding the body, embodiment, virtual space and tourism, as well as examining notions of subversion as they relate to gender and sexuality in screen environments. The key arguments put forth in this work have their foundations in poststructuralist theories of the body and the cultural construction of identity. Most important to this analysis are the cultural and social conditions that replicate dominant tropes of power and agency as they are applied to representational practices, such as embodying oneself via an avatar through the screen. The arguments in this book are readily extendible to other on-screen environments due to the proliferation of virtual environments and other social networks which are premised on real-time engagement through digitized interaction"--