Michelle Newcomb
Religious Studies – Primal Religions
Topic of Choice #5
The Trickster in the Modern Day
I’m taking an internet law class in which we discuss the changes that have happened and will happen because of the internet and I interpreted one of our class discussions the other day in a way that reflects our religious studies discussion on the trickster. In the other class we talked about the freedom of information and the freedom of speech that is used on the internet and the attempt of the government to control it. I think that the internet is the modern day trickster for a modern day world. It is a way for us to mock, discuss, analyze etc… our society, our government, our way of life in a way that leaves us untouchable by those that we criticize.
There has been some significant efforts to control the anonymity of the internet (for the purpose of enforcing laws) but these have so far been very unsuccessful. I think the reason they have been so has a lot to do with the freedom of speech but it also has to do with our respect for the trickster in our society – I think all Americans, with or without knowing it, have a great respect for the trickster and his position in our society, why else would we give all citizens, through the freedom of speech, the power to be the trickster?
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