Introduction: Identity in the age of the internet-Sherry Turkle

Turkle expresses the different types of social identities online and in virtual life.   She explores the realities set by the individuals and how they portray themselves on line in MUDs (multi-user domains).

Turkle goes through a list of games where users share and explore different types of reality created by the game administrators.   This type of networking is used to link and provide a sense of community amongst the individuals playing and using the MUD.  Within these games and MUDs players or users can create a 'self' different than that of their real life self- giving the user a varied sense of identity.  Turkle writes ' As more people spend more time in these virtual spaces, some o so far as to challenge the idea of giving any priority to RL at all. "After all," says one dedicated MUD player and IRC user, "why grant such superior status to the self that has the body when the selves that don't have bodies are able to have different kinds of experiences?"  When people can play at having different genders and different lives, it isn't surprising that for some this play has become as real as what we conventionally think of as their lives, although for them this is no longer a valid distinction' (Turkle, 1995:14)

Turkle describes her experience with computers and how it has evolved into what is know as a 'postmodern' look at technology then and now.  I find that this article is a bit dated and very basic.  Although there are major key points that are still relevant to todays needs it is hard  when playing games or on RL or VL to distinguish real from virtual.