Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
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<strong>Cultural</strong> <strong>Identity</strong> <strong>Politics</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> (<strong>Post</strong>-)<strong>Transitional</strong> <strong>Societies</strong><br />
on <strong>the</strong>ir own, make a fully <strong>in</strong>tentional choice about who <strong>the</strong>y want to be <strong>in</strong> cyberspace.<br />
Some are partially aware of <strong>the</strong>ir choice and with help or through experience become<br />
more aware. O<strong>the</strong>rs resist any self-<strong>in</strong>sight at all. They live under <strong>the</strong> illusion that <strong>the</strong>y are<br />
<strong>in</strong> control of <strong>the</strong>mselves.<br />
We express our identity <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> clo<strong>the</strong>s we wear, <strong>in</strong> our body language, through <strong>the</strong><br />
careers and hobbies we pursue. We can th<strong>in</strong>k of <strong>the</strong>se th<strong>in</strong>gs as <strong>the</strong> media through<br />
which we communicate who we are. Similarly, <strong>in</strong> cyberspace, people choose a specific<br />
communication channel to express <strong>the</strong>ir selves. There are a variety of possibilities and<br />
comb<strong>in</strong>ations of possibilities, each choice giv<strong>in</strong>g rise to specific attributes of identity.<br />
People who rely on text communication prefer <strong>the</strong> semantics of language and perhaps<br />
also <strong>the</strong> l<strong>in</strong>ear, composed, rational, analytic dimensions of self that surface via written<br />
discourse. They may be <strong>the</strong> “verbalizers” that have been described <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> cognitive<br />
psychology literature – as opposed to “visualizers” who may enjoy <strong>the</strong> more symbolic,<br />
imagistic and holistic reason<strong>in</strong>g that is expressed via <strong>the</strong> creation of avatars and web<br />
graphics. Some people prefer synchronous communication – like chat – which reflects<br />
<strong>the</strong> spontaneous, free-form, witty and temporally “present” self. O<strong>the</strong>rs are drawn to <strong>the</strong><br />
more thoughtful, reflective and measured style of asynchronous communication, as <strong>in</strong><br />
message boards and e-mail. There are personalities that want to show and not receive too<br />
much by us<strong>in</strong>g web cams or creat<strong>in</strong>g web pages; to receive and not show too much by<br />
lurk<strong>in</strong>g or web brows<strong>in</strong>g; and still o<strong>the</strong>rs who want to dive <strong>in</strong>to highly <strong>in</strong>teractive social<br />
environments where both show<strong>in</strong>g and receiv<strong>in</strong>g thrive.<br />
Contemporary culture has been technologized on a scale and with a speed that is wholly<br />
unprecedented. We live <strong>in</strong> a world where nation-state boundaries become permeable, if not<br />
<strong>in</strong>significant, when considered <strong>in</strong> terms of <strong>the</strong> flow of digital resources, <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>teroperable<br />
<strong>in</strong>terconnected <strong>in</strong>frastructures and <strong>the</strong> perpetual <strong>in</strong>terfac<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>the</strong> screened world. This<br />
new world order of reflexive or “soft” capitalism promises a reconstruction of <strong>the</strong> polity,<br />
<strong>in</strong>augurat<strong>in</strong>g a process of global/glocal civic connection, reconnection and renewal.<br />
Here <strong>the</strong> new global economy, <strong>in</strong>formation culture and political systems are <strong>in</strong>separably<br />
entangled with<strong>in</strong> a flattened and convergent “technological culture” (Lash and Lury,<br />
2007). The only way you make sense of people’s relationships with technology is to make<br />
sense of <strong>the</strong>ir broader cultural patterns, because people’s relationships with technology do<br />
not operate <strong>in</strong> a vacuum. It is very important to understand <strong>the</strong> bigger picture <strong>in</strong> which<br />
technologies exist, <strong>in</strong> order to understand why people use <strong>the</strong>m. The way we th<strong>in</strong>k about<br />
mobile phones, <strong>the</strong> th<strong>in</strong>gs we use computers to do – <strong>the</strong>se are th<strong>in</strong>gs we have done for<br />
hundreds or thousands of years. They are all about communicat<strong>in</strong>g with people. They are<br />
about shar<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>formation, and <strong>the</strong>y are about forms of social network<strong>in</strong>g and reciprocity<br />
or as Geneviev Bell po<strong>in</strong>ted out: “One of <strong>the</strong> th<strong>in</strong>gs that makes a successful technology is a<br />
technology that supports experiences that people want to have” (Bell, 2004: 1).<br />
Modern society is considered as not be<strong>in</strong>g responsible for <strong>the</strong> welfare of <strong>in</strong>dividuals, but<br />
<strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>dividual is considered as be<strong>in</strong>g solely responsible for his/her own welfare, fate and<br />
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