Remote meetings
| Online communication is booming. There are hundreds of dating sites. Often hidden behind a pseudonym and a sometimes embellished, sometimes completely fictitious identity, we chat with strangers whom we tend to idealize. The Internet has a playful and disinhibiting side, thanks to its protective or "screen" character, which facilitates entry into relationships and confidences that we might never make face-to-face with a close person. Flirting, for example, is made easier, and failure on the Net is less painful than if you're in direct contact with the person who refuses your advances. Distance, anonymity and the absence of any non-verbal communication (gestures, facial expressions, etc.) mean that dialogue is different, more calculated, sometimes distorted or misinterpreted. |
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The Internet is certainly not the place of all dangers, attracting psychopaths, sexual perverts and schizophrenics. That much is obvious. There's no questioning the fact that friendships and love affairs are born on the Internet, but it's also true that first real encounters are often disappointing to a greater or lesser extent, because the other person doesn't turn out to be quite what you thought he or she was. Most dating sites also advise their members to be careful when giving out their postal address, telephone number or e-mail address, and even more so for a first date, by choosing a public place. |
updated on 4/28/24
