In reading Dibbell’s A Rape in Cyberspace, the concept of the internet as a special type of space is very compelling. In tracing the ‘criminal’ actions of a specific user on LambdaMOO, an online virtual world similar to Second Life, the author becomes so immersed in the concept of the internet as a comprehensible space that he experiences what he calls a type of ‘metaphysical derangement.’ In conceptualizing LambdaMOO as a spatial realm full of subjects who adhere to laws consistent with those of the real world, Dibbell undergoes a cycle of understanding similar to the one experienced in The Cave.
Dibbell’s fascination with this type of virtual world begins after he learns of a ‘virtual rape case’ in the realm of LambdaMOO that was carried out by an avatar under the name of Mr. Bungle. Victims of the rape gathered together in the world of LambdaMOO to discuss the consequences of this vagrant. Dibbell then begins to view the space of LambdaMoo and the unsaid doctrine of conduct that its users follow, as becoming blurred with real life: “Where before I found it hard to take virtual rape seriously, I was finding it hard to believe how I could have ever not taken it seriously. I was proud to have arrived at this perspective – it felt like an exotic sort of achievement, and it definitely made my ongoing experience of the MOO a richer one.” (pg. 27) As she later describes, this mode of thought, if misapplied, poses a serious threat to the freedom of human expression.
When first entering The Cave, it appears just as it is – a bright cube, devoid of any other material. However, after experiencing VR through the programs run, it becomes to hard to imagine The Cave without the tangible images presented in front of the user. The empty cube feels like a distant memory. Hands reach out to touch something that isn’t there, heads turn to view an image that isn’t where it appears to be. Whereas Dibbell is captivated by the daily happenings of the MOO world following the debate around the rape case, the subject in the cave suddenly conceptualizes him/herself as abiding by the metaphysical laws set forth by the Cave; deranged as they may be. In this sense, the Cave serves as its own special type of space – one capable of entrancing the user so much that the line between VR and RL becomes, for the moment, eerily unclear.
However, just as Dibbell recounts his feelings of foolishness after arriving at the LambdaMOO server, so too did the computer program being run inside the cave come to an abrupt end, leaving the user feeling sheepish for ever believing that the special effects of the program could ever have been corporeal. The lights turn on, leaving the user with a feeling of emptiness; similar to that of Dibbell looking into the unreachable inner-workings of the LambdaMOO server.
In hindsight, it is easy to see the dangers presented with this sort of voodooist perception of space. As mentioned earlier, Dibbell’s temporary conceptualization of LambdaMOO presents the problem of properly applying freedom of speech. This debate becomes even more complicated when the user is given freedom to move as if they were in another realm. Although the programs experienced in the Cave did not provide an encounter with unfamiliar, ungendered users, it nonetheless provided seemingly limitless freedom of motion and action – motion and action detached from that of the real world. Does this mean that the user must abide by the same physical and behavioral laws in VR as those experienced in RL? Although the answer may not be so cut and dry, LambdaMOO and The Cave serve as effective mediums for exploring this conflict.
