In Video Games and Holding Power, Sherry Turkle writes that video games have two promises, one is the “touch of infinity”, and the other is the “promise of perfection” (pg. 511). In the video game world, a user has multiple lives, always having another chance to complete the task at hand. I think this gives users a sense that they are invincible and possess superhuman abilities. For young people, and probably people in general, there is a sense of immortality. If you lose the game, you can start over. This isn’t always the case in real life. The other assurance a user receives from the video game, the promise of perfection, removes their human limitations. Turkle describes it as the person becoming an “actor” in their own life (pg. 512). The video feeds the person’s desire to fix or control what they see as shortcomings, giving a false sense of control. The connection between the user and the game is immediate, unlike the time and work they would have to put in to see results in real life.
I struggled with the second reading, Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway. I knew right away it was a metaphor, but I could not make the connections right away. I read the piece multiple times. The section that stood out to me was The “Homework Economy” outside “The Home”. The homework economy is a term coined by Richard Gordon. Work has been redefined as a feminized term. All types of work are seen as feminine, whether it is done by men or women (pg. 526).
