durantspooner

Blarney Stone Irish Bar, Second Life showcase destination

After visiting Dublin, I found the majority of the population dancing in a pub called “The Blarney Stone.” After dancing with some of the residents, an avatar greeted me. After asking his permission to be interviewed, he agreed:

[14:24] durantspooner: Are you from Dublin?

[14:24] Interviewee: however I’m hosting atm so I may not be able to answer quickly

[14:25] durantspooner: That’s fine, as long as you do.

[14:25] Interviewee: No, I’m from England and my family is from West Cork, Ireland

[14:25] durantspooner: The questions I will be asking you are based off of your culture and values.

[14:25] durantspooner: When you first meet a stranger in your SecondLife community, do you normally stand close together or far apart?

[14:26] Interviewee: Not sure, never really noticed

[14:26] Interviewee: but I do tend to give people space

[14:26] durantspooner: Does it matter about gender, age, race, or social class?

([14:27] Inventory item offered and accepted)

[14:27] Interviewee: Not to me, for one thing you do not know these things here and for another it’s not something I take into account much in RL or SL

[14:28] durantspooner: When you first meet a stranger in your SecondLife community is there some type of physical contact you do to acknowledge one another. Like a handshake?

[14:28] Interviewee: not really no

[14:29] durantspooner: Okay.

[14:29] durantspooner: When you meet a stranger in SecondLife do you perform some type of physical gesture, like a bow or clapping?

[14:29] Interviewee: No

[14:29] durantspooner: Thank you. That’s all for the Physical Behavior portion. Next is Verbal Behavior.

[14:30] durantspooner: When you first meet a stranger in your SecondLife community is there a proper way to address them? Should you speak in a formal tone?

[14:31] Interviewee: I just say hello

[14:31] durantspooner: Does it typically depend on gender, age, race, or social class?

[14:31] Interviewee: england tends to be more formal than America anyway

[14:32] Interviewee: Gender, race, social class, age and alike I don’t take into account

[14:33] durantspooner: When you meet a stranger in your SecondLife community should you ask about his or her health and family, or should you wait until you are on a more personal level?

[14:33] Interviewee: Wait, not everyone wants to talk about their RL

[14:34] durantspooner: How personal would you say your conversations should go?

[14:35] durantspooner: As in, would a “polite” conversation be kept in place?

[14:38] Interviewee: I always try to stay polite to new people

[14:38] Interviewee: only joke about stuff and wind people up when I know they can take it

[14:38] durantspooner: In this community, is it generally considered impolite to avoid interactions with a stranger?

[14:39] Interviewee: there is too many people here to be able to talk to everyone

[14:40] durantspooner: In this community, is interaction with a stranger generally discouraged?

[14:40] Interviewee: if someone says Hi I will talk to them, however I can not get around to everyone

[14:40] durantspooner: This is true.

[14:40] Interviewee: not at all, quite the opposite, this sim is very friendly

[14:41] durantspooner: These final questions can be not only about your SecondLife community, but your real life as well. Just make sure you distinguish the two so I will know.

[14:41] durantspooner: How do you react when a stranger expresses a belief that you find odd or peculiar? Are you curious? Do you ask the individual to explain his or herself?

[14:42] Interviewee: I do the ENglish thing of looking at the floor

[14:43] durantspooner: What do you do when a stranger states a belief that you find offensive or morally objectionable?

[14:43] Interviewee: I make a joke to try to ridicule it

[14:43] Interviewee: or ask a question that negates it

[14:44] Interviewee: but I’m like that in RL

[14:44] durantspooner: Would you give me an example of a belief that you would find offensive or morally objectionable?

[14:44] Interviewee: Racism, Sexism

[14:45] durantspooner: Thank you for your time. Now, would you mind taking a snapshot with me? This is only to prove to my professor that I interviewed you rather than making up these answers lol

[14:45] Interviewee: np

[14:47] durantspooner: Thank you so much!

[14:47] Interviewee: not a problem

There are a few reasons why we as a global population can not come to a “reasoned agreement about values.” First, for some of us, we were raised to believe a certain way. Parents often raise their children to believe what they were raised to believe. We grow up thinking that our parents are always right (that’s a stretch), so we assume we have to keep the same values that they do. Second, some people take it upon themselves to explore other perspectives of topics and create their own opinions and values. They realize that, just because society or their family believes one way, it does not mean that they have to follow their lead. Either way, it is a personal matter.

Despite the fact that we can not agree, why do we continue to communicate? By being a part of such a diverse, populated world, we have no choice but to communicate. While some cultures may be quite similar, some cultures may differ greatly. Because many cultural beliefs are so controversial, it often becomes an easy topic to discuss. Unfortunately, not many people understand that it’s okay to agree to disagree. Instead, they think that the views they have are the correct ways to see things, which leads to the many problems we are facing today. But, if you really think about it, is there a correct way? Multiple perspectives give numerous pros and cons of the situation.