When we share a thought or opinion on social media under an ‘anonymous’ username, are we really anonymous? The most common usage of language online is achieved by utilising the typed word.
A problem that the user has to deal with is that words do not have any material properties at all, within the context of the digital realm. one cannot find out what is inside a word by cutting it open and looking inside, nor can we see what a letter consists of by looking at it through a microscope. When used online, words convey zero cultural or social context, as they do not exist. Because of this, the internet can be used as a canvas for one to construct their own ‘ideal’ albeit fictional anonymous identity, which feels more ‘real’ than ever before. We construct a persona which will come into contact with more people than we could ever normally meet in reality, achieved through the use of chat-rooms, social media platforms and blog posts.
In a society whose communication component is becoming more prominent day by day, both as a reality
and as an issue, it is clear that language assumes a new importance. It would be superficial to reduce its significance to the traditional alternative between manipulatory speech and the unilateral transmission of messages on the one hand, and free expression and dialogue on the other.
The artwork created a window for the viewer to look at themselves behind a wall of ASCII letters, personifying the idea of a not-so-anonymous internet experience, due to the possible breaching of privacy from hackers, corporations and companies.
find the code I wrote below!
