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Even though I say that I am not so much taken with the second life world, I seem to be returning to contemplate its nature. Today, particularly in regards to Heather and Marie’s Iraq War Project and creating avatars to represent the thousands of American soldiers who have died to date in the war. I had the privilege of discussing this project with the two creators throughout the term, and we had debates revolving around embodiment, representation and ethics. I had no idea the powerful nature of embodiment until I entered SL, and particularly until contemplating embodying a dead soldier’s avatar. I was not one of the selected who did this critique day, but rather, one from the other group of SL’ers who experienced the soldier avatars scattered on the island in which we were located.
Questions that we discussed: What are the ethical boundaries around this one? Should next of kin be contacted when representing their deceased family member in SL? If all the information is accessible online (via public media sites) is this requirement waived? And is it a requirement at all? How to address potential misuse of avatars by users (which I believe was addressed by H&M).
Through the critique and witnessing the two groups of people (those who embodied and those who didn’t) and their reactions to the piece, it became clear from my perspective that the target audience should potentially be the former. It seemed that through embodiment, spectators became active participants in this project and were forced to experience the humanity and individuality within the number – to become connected to one solder out of the four thousand. I did not have the same reaction as a member of the latter group. Though, I imagine having a large mass of soldiers suddenly appear in my virtual space would indeed have an impact on me.
Writing this now, it could also interesting if this was taken into high schools as an educational tool, perhaps accompanied by a curriculum guide exploring the human loss and impact of war and related topics.
As others have mentioned, it would be interesting to document in the same way the total deaths of Iraqis throughout the war. Yes, arriving at an accurate number may be more difficult – that in itself is a statement.
A donations box via SL, as Elaine mentioned, could prove one effective way to raise funds for this project.
What I found interesting is that to enter this ‘new’ life – Second Life – a whole list of questions of ethics, morality, representation, what is acceptable, what is not (etc.) seem to emerge. Not only does this lead to discussion of what should/could be protocol in the virtual world, it in effect, forces me pause and re-examine our media systems in our First.
Great art challenges our understanding of art and the world around us. I have to say that this project achieves in both. Looking forward to seeing this grow.
