The Language of DeviantArt

Figure 1, Developmental progression of participation in online communities (Kozinets, 2010, p. 21-40).

Language is a massive part of human culture. As such, the specific language a network uses can be used to define the network's sense of space, place and community identity. I will demonstrate why this is so with my own example, DeviantArt.

All networks, particularly online or virtual networks, have words or phrases which are unique or have great meaning to that particular network. With such a large portion of the modern society spending a considerable amount of time on the internet, phrases unique to spaces on the internet such as 'cyber-bullying', 'trolling' and 'the net' are known to most people. This shows how our language has adapted in response to changing conditions. It also demonstrates how our language has adapted as a result of familiarity and importance - the internet is an extremely familiar and prominent part of our lives.

It is the same with the network of DeviantArt. There are various terms which have considerable meaning to this network alone, such as 'Core Member', 'Group' and 'Watcher'. The use of terms specific to DeviantArt has made the website a familiar setting - it has made a strange space into a well-known place. "Thus warm conversation between friends can make the place itself seem warm" (Tuan, 1991). It also provides members of this network with a sense of community identity, as members of this network share a common language which is specific to DeviantArt.

This is how the human language works. As referenced in this week's lecture, the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis states that "Human beings do not live in the objective world alone, nor alone in the world of social activity... but are very much at the mercy of the particular language which has become the medium of expression for their society", meaning that the language specific to a network shapes the way people perceive the world. This also works the other way around, as a society's perception of the world will often shape the language.

Reference List

Kozinets, R. (2010). Understanding cultures online. Netnography: Doing Ethnographic Research Online, 21-40. Retrieved from http://edc15.education.ed.ac.uk/njenkins/2015/02/05/typlogies-of-online-communities-participation/

Tuan, Y. (1991). Language and making of place: A narrative-descriptive approach. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 81(4), 684-696. Retrieved from https://learnjcu.jcu.edu.au/webapps/Conc-camcontent-bb_bb60/items/getitem.jsp?as_course_code=14-BA1002-TSV-INT-SP2&content_id=_1631890_1&course_id=_60553_1&doc_id=30163