Second Life

I thought this article was VERY interesting indeed. The researchers’ experiences in Second Life share some similarities with the Half Life study we read earlier. One of those similar observations was how people design their avatars. Female avatars were typically characterized by large breasts, small waists, and long hair, mirroring the real-life ideals of the female body. Male avatars often had large, muscular upper bodies. What I found fascinating was how self-conscious the researcher’s felt when they designed their avatars in less idealized ways, i.e. as an androgynous female, rather than what everyone else was doing. I would think that the ability to customize characters would bring more variety in the game, but I guess people are just too exposed to the same bodily ideas, and cannot help be influenced by them.

I also thought it was interesting to hear the researcher's fears when they first started playing. For example, that other Second Life players might only be interacting with them because of ulterior, sexual motives, and that choosing a male avatar felt safer than a female one. It was strange to hear how sexualized some of the actions and scripts were for the players, and how blatantly things like naked female and male body parts were displayed within the game for people to purchase. I found some of the experiences of the researchers rather amusing, but I can understand how shocking it could feel to be a total beginner in the game, and then suddenly having your character take shower in unexpectedly inappropriate way. I also thought it was fascinating to see how in some areas, scripts would make the female characters carry themselves in a clingy, sort of vulnerable way, while the make avatars would be acting laid back and “cool.” There seemed like a lot of examples of sexualization and gender stereotyping, and it is interesting to see how normal it became for the researchers as they continued to play.