Post Content vs Appearance
 

Just out of interest:

Would someone's appearance change the way you read/ responded to their posts?

Following the various "Show Yourself" threads, people have responded - as is natural - approving of others' looks, calling them cute, saying they will flirt with them etc etc.

Now I have posted pic/ video, because I'm desperately nosey and love to see what other people look like. Given the choice I'd like a tour of Dwellars houses, offices, their family tree and a sample of their children's handwriting to boot. Therefore I feel I should show if I look (learned at an early age obviously!

But my question is, are we losing the one area where people are judged solely on their minds? And if we are, should we regret that?

Mmm.....good question. I have mixed feelings on this. Part of me wants to post a picture.....then again, I avoid going and looking at those posts because I don't want to know what people look like. I'd rather know how they percieve themselves to be.

I never thought it would matter, but I had a salutary experience when in my gaming days. I had a friend, who played a really evil, but deeply suave character. He had huge charisma within the game, everyone was drawn to him. Naturally, I formed a mental image of him.

Then I saw a picture of him. Now, it didn't in any way change my feelings of friendship towards him, but it did subtly alter the dynamic, when his physical appearance did not match the character he projected. I got over that quite quickly and reinstated that character in my understanding of him, but for a little while, it did get in the way a little.

Yes, and yes. I've resisted, for years, knowing what people look like on message boards (usually by not following a link). I've always valued the internet as a collection of disembodied minds, the one place where the things that seperate us are marginalized. I hear what you are saying, but I think, maybe the natural human tendencies are inevitable. I don't feel as strongly about it as I used to. I guess I'm de-sensitized to the idea.

I *love* being able to put a face to the sensibilities. I love it because *it teaches me not to judge a person*, in this case neither on appearance nor presentation. Getting that moment of " I would have never thought they looked like that " is an ongoing education on a subject at which I frankly suck.

That said, here are people whom I think look like their post content. :D

rkzenrage
foot3
yesman
Ducks


People for whom I had to adjust my preconceived image:

Shawnee123
Griff
Marichiko

I'm sure there's more in each category, but I probably should try to do some actual work today...

Cool. Now I'm so curious as to what your preconceived image was. This is neat because now I get to find out what my writing style conveys.

Hey - what bout me Elspode?

I don't think my opinion of anyone has changed because I don't - and never have - judged on appearance. Not being holier-than thou I promise - I never get a mental picture of characters in books either, even when I am totally in love with them. My imagination doesn't run like that is all. And even seeing the pictures I will never remember who is who....

But I believe I am in the minority.

I am like you, Sundae. People just look like what they look like. I've been in situtuations trying to describe someone to someone else...if they ask something like "does he have a moustache?" I often don't know...their face is just their face, you know?

I like seeing the pics, but I don't really make a connection between the persona and the image. If I have a preconception about someone's personality, I revert to that when I'm reading the post.

I also suck at putting names with faces, IRL and online.

Thats' a great way to look at it. Thanks, Elspode.

Well, therein lies the rub. I didn't have what I would think of as a *specific* image of you in my mind; no visualization or anything like that. It was more a, "Hmm...she doesn't look like I was expecting" when I saw your pic. I don't think I can explain it any better than that.

Sundae...in truth, based on your self-descriptions, I was expecting someone rather portly, and that couldn't be further from the truth from what I've seen. Not that it would have mattered if you *had been* portly, but we are talking about preconceived visual imagery, right? I find you lovely, quintessentially English, and, from all appearances, entirely approachable. At least, those are the descriptors that come to mind now that I've seen your pic.

I've made the same comment to others in the past, and everyone wants to know how you expected them to look. I guess I would want to know too.

I do understand - I think that was what I was getting at. You get a "feel" for someone. And even then they can shock you with an opinion. But is that idea of them nailed into place by the visual? For example I have the Blackadder script book - I can't hear anyone but the actual actors in my head when I read it.

BTW - thanks for the kind words Elspode - and I know with you the picture has nothing to do with it.

Ummm...you ignoring this, spode, lends me to believe you envisioned me as something much more than I am and you don't want to hurt my feelings. That, or you pictured me as a wart-covered, hairless, toothless, sloth-like creature and you don't want to hurt my feelings.
:sniff:

Absolutely *not*, girl! I think you're cuter than a bug's ear! No, I mean exactly what I said...that, although when I saw your pic, I thought, "gee, she doesn't look like I was expecting", I cannot say with any certainty what I *was* expecting.

Griff nailed it, there, but now I'll forge on and try to elaborate at least a little more. Your writing style is very fresh, honest and open. I think I was expecting someone...well...*younger*. In no way am I disappointed with the fact that you seem to be a grown up in the pic. Quite the contrary; I think that when a person reaches a certain age (now, don't put me on the spot and ask me how old I think you are, 'cause that's just gonna go bad for both of us) and is still able to seem so open and lively, displaying few traces of bitterness or hostility about their lives...well, damn. That's cool. But it skews my preconceptions to the younger end of the age/appearance scale.

I'm just digging myself into a really deep hole, here aren't I? How can I redeem myself? Um...you're very cute, Me talk you long time, love you many much long time. Yeah, that covers it, I hope. :)

:) And when you're done there you can explain how you read my mind....