So the copper key is
found and Wade has met Art3mis. Hearing about what they would do with the $$
Wade sounds more selfish than Art3mis.
I wonder how bad the
world really is. Is Wade starving? He doesn't leave the car to eat.
Considering his family I would be surprised if eating is uneventful. Wade said
he got teased at physical school for being fat, but he gets exercise from
charging the generator. Wade seems on the poor side [can't afford in game
teleportation] but he apparently is not starving. The economy has to be pretty
bad, because in the book the distribution of in game items "so
Americans can indulge in a favorite past time again", if shopping is not a
valid real activity people must be a little poor, just enough that it is not
fun anymore I guess. The cars are abandoned because of lack of fuel, so there
must not be much oil left, but what are the servers and OASIS run on? Maybe GSS
invested in getting alternitive fuel energy. Or OASIS is rich enough that they
can afford the large energy costs. How are so many people able to use OASIS?
Even if the start up cost of the head set is only 25¢ what about the
electricity to run it? If the vast electricity network exists, then why is
Wi-Fi only available near cites? The world is shit, but Wade doesn't care, as
long as he has OASIS and doesn't describe the real world in enough to know if
it can be repaired. Many teens see the world as hopeless, in situations
that are [from a global stand point] mild. Now that net neutrality is dead
maybe the current internet providers refuse to allow the bandwidth necessary to
run OASIS, so GSS has to create its own internet signals. And it is much more
effective to only provide the cities and suberbs with internet per person.
Lets listen for more information about the dystopian aspect of the world. I told my dad if Homestuck [a web comic] was a religion I would be converted. Fandoms [in Wades case gunting] is when a fan's hobby becomes more than just a hobby, and more like a religion. Wade is so into gunting it is like a religion.
I would like to comment on your point on religion. You bring up the idea that Wade views gunting as more of a religion than a hobby. I agree, but I would like to elaborate on my view on this topic. I believe that there is a difference between religion and an idol. Religion is something that one puts faith into. I do not think Wade is putting faith or trust into his gunting. There is nothing to trust. Instead, I think that Wade has an obsession with gunting. He views it more as an idol, and like professional or fanatic videogamers, it is a continual rush of excitement and adrenalin. We all have had those nights where you can’t put down the controller. You have play until you defeat the boss, achieve the goal, or win the game. Wade is in that state right now. He has obsessive and compulsive thoughts and actions that fully regard the search for the egg. Once you get the ball rolling, you can’t stop it.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think there's a crucial distinction between obsession and faith. Like many gamers, Wade is definitely increasingly obsessed with the hunt, and there is very little faith that he will actually find it. That doesn't mean that the Gunters aren't "followers," but I would suggest that they are more like zealots rather than believers.
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