A Big, Bright, Virtual World

       This weeks narrative, "Snow Crash," by Neal Stephenson, tells of a cyberpunk world run almost entirely by massive internet based technologies and the corporations that make/upkeep them. National government has been made for the most part ineffectually, and many people of this universe have abandoned their own reality to pursue lives in the virtual reality known as "the Metaverse." Exploring themes of perceptions altering ones reality and connecting with the real world versus the viral ones.

        The main character is a computer genius who lives in a world where computers make up much of society. You would think this is good luck, but over and over again it is displayed how his, (and his friends') fixation with digital technologies leads to disaster. In this world a MMO-esc experience known as the "Metaverse" has people living out their whole lives online in a fake collection of experiences and situations. None of this is real, and their real world bodies end up being out of shape, strewn with equipment to keep their addiction to the online world going; on top of the villainous groups in this novel exposing these internet based technologies to their own nefarious ends.

       Neal Stephenson explores a world where fantastical technology can revolutionize the way that people interact and live with others in an exciting new light, but also foretells of a scenario where these technologies end up dominating the lives of those who use them. He tells a story not centered around massive flashy wars or interstellar travel, but of a society that has become so disgruntled with the way the real world is that they abandon reality to pursue virtual reality. It is, (in my opinion) a tale of caution laced behind the main plot of the story, to change and adapt with technological evolutions but not allow said advancements to permanently hold and define who you are. Without our base characteristics and interactions with our peers, society as a whole begins to lose our humanity and become the "gargoyles" displayed in this narrative; disfigured representations of what we once were.