"The only way to have a friend is to be one." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

[quiescent]

Hello! So, I'm about to embark on a 10-15 page midterm paper of my choice. The topic I've chosen to write about is:
The strength of internet friendships and its defiance against the stigma associated with the internet and its culture
The exact exploration question is still in the works, but the concept is the same either way. I am going to

Comments

part II

[surmise]

4. Oh god. I can tell my online friends a lot of shite. I can tell my real life friends a lot of it too, but the fact that I already spend so much time with them, physically, it's kind of nice to have someone that isn't RIGHT THERE NEXT TO YOU ALL THE TIME. You can also complain about your real life friends to people online which is such a big plus, 'cause it's unbiased (usually) and they just give you a pair of fresh eyes to look through, especially in a debate or some such.

5. The downside.. I think a downside to online friends is that a lot of people aren't like how they are irl. I mean, I'm much nicer online than I am irl. Not that I'm NOT nice in real life or anything, but I'm less stand-offish and get to know people much more easier. This may be because I don't do well in large groups of people, and I don't go out of my way to find real life friends- whereas online, if I get into a community (like HiH) then I want to get to know the people that I'll be playing with. I'm not that much different, it's just you get to see the "bad" parts of me instead of me just talking about it to you.

6. Kind of ties in with how I answered #5, I think. You only met a certain side to that online friend, and you don't really know what to expect. They can be exactly as they are online, or a complete opposite- or even a very in-between of what they say they are like and how they are online.

7. I think getting mail/packages what-have-you is a big step. I've received cards from people online (just a handful) but I feel like it kind of strengthens that relationship. It may be weird at first, but if you had a pen-pal, it's the same thing, right?