Spectacular Interventions of Second Life: Goon Culture, Griefing, and Disruption in Virtual Spaces

Authors

  • Burcu S. Bakioglu Indiana University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4101/jvwr.v1i3.348

Keywords:

griefers, Second Life, virtual worlds, cultural studies, 4chan, Something Awful

Abstract

Employing game theory and cultural studies in order to make a much needed distinction between grief play (which is a type of game play) and griefing (as a disruptive cultural activity), I argue that griefers in Second Life, who engage in potentially subversive practices which residents recognize as characterizing the activities of subcultures, construct cultural formations, a term developed by Raymond Williams in his book The Sociology of Culture to describe groups that embody looser structures. Claiming that they are causing turmoil for the lulz (or laughs), they treat their activities as mere game play. However, underneath the rhetoric of game play based on targeting those who take the

Author Biography

Burcu S. Bakioglu, Indiana University

Comparative Literature

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Published

2009-01-17

Issue

Section

Peer Reviewed Research Papers