I argue that current descriptions of the ways that language and computer code effect change (are “performative”) oversimplify the effects that utterances made in and through virtual spaces have on the real world. Building on J.L. Austin’s speech-act theory and Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction of Austin’s notion of performative language, I develop the theory of cyber-performativity. Though Katherine Hayles argues that “code” is more strongly performative than the utterances Austin focused on, Hayles’ analysis is founded on her problematic distinction between the logical computational worldview and the slippery natural-languages worldview. Cyber-performative theory builds on Hayles’ argument by showing that computational processes are as uncertain as natural languages: like human languages, “code” might always signify more and other than is intended. I argue that the social, economic, and political status of language changes as utterances made in virtual worlds such as Second Life simultaneously effect change in both real and virtual spaces.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/2672 |
| Date | 29 April 2010 |
| Creators | Van Orden, Meindert Nicholas |
| Contributors | Cobley, Evelyn |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
Page generated in 0.0107 seconds