04-22-2011, 05:13 AM | #21 |
Member
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Re: The RP Stigma
As I said earlier, the few friends who I let in on my habits think it's pretty freaking cool.
Also, being a freshly minted 30-something, I'd just like to say that I'm confident enough in myself not to give two craps about whether someone looks at me funny or not. I'm cute, brilliant, and way above their level. Who the hell are they to judge me for enjoying text-based games, which are far more mentally challenging than graphical ones? |
04-23-2011, 08:53 AM | #22 |
New Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 19
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Re: The RP Stigma
I'm packed full of self-confidence, but to quote Brian Hook from an article linked to in Michael Hartman's (Threshold/Aristotle's) blog:
"Reality doesn't give a **** how clever you think you are." I think we MU* players sometimes pat ourselves on the back a bit too much for playing text-based games. Personally, I feel that I have a talent for languages, I consider myself well educated, and I account myself a pretty intelligent guy... but there are plenty of scientists, scholars, and other cerebral luminaries in the world who could no doubt think circles around me. I wouldn't trust myself within sixty feet of a surgeon's scalpel, either. In other words, I find "I do geek stuff, therefore I am intelligent and a nerd" to be a somewhat self-congratulatory and self-indulgent sentiment. Google "Dunning-Kruger effect" and take a gander at the Wikipedia article outlining the basic tenets of that theory. It's great food for thought and fodder for self-analysis, in my opinion. As I mentioned previously, being a "stealth geek" is not at all about my being ashamed or lacking self-confidence; on the contrary, I can be a supercilious son of a gun at times (now, for example). I simply don't want unnecessary complications arising in my life because other people perceive me as a weirdo. I have enough to deal with without a conservative authority figure eyeing me askance because he thinks I think I'm a cat person who lives in a magic forest. Again, that's his problem, not mine. I'm protecting myself from his closed-mindedness, nothing more. Similarly, I don't need knuckleheads at the gym asking me if I met any elves on the walk down. |