Trolling within the shadow of the masses

Image 1: Facebook Trolls

“A prince who is everywhere in possession of his own incognito” (Baudelaire, 1964 p.9) should not be able to exist in this world. A person such as this holds tremendous power and in the wrong hands is able to cause mass chaos and distress. Through my experience I found that Facebook has created space where anonymity and access to world stage is so readily available. This setting has given a rise to a new type of flâneur: trolls.

 The more I engaged with Facebook, I disturbingly found the act of trolling was regular occurrence. Sifting through endless comments I found that ‘trolls’ relished asserting their dominance and thrived in the attention they drew; “offering themselves up as [one of the] spectacles” (Prouty, 2009) of Facebook. Through the anonymity Facebook provides, it seems that people are unable to uphold good moral character, as they fade into the masses unmoved, unashamed of their rebelliousness as discussed by Barnes (1997). Facebook has become a breeding ground trolls, it enables users to act as they please in a public setting then with a click, instantly vanish without a trace, without consequence.

 Barnes (1997) discusses that virtual social networks can only exist though our interactions with it, forming a cognitive map throughout our experience. Though my own experience of trolls I found that I was unable to freely express myself online for fear of ridicule. Disturbingly this fear began to mirror my reality offline. Kuttainen (2016) explains, maps are powerful because we believe them to be an objectively true representation. It’s a frightening thought that individuals are not only so actively engaged in the act of trolling but also relish the attention they so desperately crave; making you wonder how much of their identity can be, or has been influenced by their virtual one.

 References 

Barnes, G. (1997). Passages of the Cyber-Flanuer. Otago University. Retrieved from http://www.raynbird.com/essays/Passage_Flaneur.html

Baudelaire, C., Mayne, J. (1964). The Painter of Modern Life, London, England: Phaidon

Kuttainen, V. (2016). BA1002: Our space: Networks, narratives and the making of place, lecture 4: Maps. [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://learnjcu.edu.au

Kotenko, J. (2013, August 30). Facebook identity fraud is up and you need to be careful . Digital trends. [Image] Retrieved from http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/if-youre-not-careful-you-could-be-the-next-victim-of-identity-fraud-on-facebook/

 Prouty, R. (2009, October 28). A turtle on a leash. One-way street. Retrieved from http://www.onewaystreet.typepad.com/one_way_street/2009/10/a-turtle-on-a-leash.html

Williams, Z. (2012, June 14). What is an internet troll? The guardian. Retrieved from. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/jun/12/what-is-an-internet-troll