Nev: An Unusually Willing Codfish

      This week, we watched a documentary called "Catfish." As part of the class directive, we were asked to consider whether or not our virtual/digital selves are accurate representations of who we are in real life. I think most people would agree that you can tell quite a bit about a person based on their internet use, social media accounts, search history, and general on-line participation. However, after watching this documentary, I found it more difficult to say that this was true. This claim of virtual personhood requires more specification; therefore, I would say that a person's virtual self can provide details about the life they wished they lived, or their aspirations, wants, and desires. That being said, it is clear that the people Angela created were fake; however, after hearing the real Angela's story it is also evident that the fake profiles were, in a sense, fragmented aspects of what she aspired to be.
      We also took a small poll at the end of class to see how many people felt some kind of empathy towards Angela. In class, I raised my hand to indicate that I did feel bad for her and felt that she could not be fully blamed for her actions. However, the more I think about how calculated and planned out her every move was, I start to think of her less as a victim of her circumstances and more of an opportunist. For example, she created a fake persona named "Abby" who was a young girl based on her own daughter then she had "Abby" make the initial contact with Nev. I sort of skimmed over this detail of the documentary at first, but its a crucial detail in understanding Angela's motives. Why not just send Nev the painting as the real Angela? I am sure he would have appreciated the gesture regardless of who was sending him the fan mail.
      After much consideration, I think Angela created these fake profiles and fake life with the intention of deceiving Nev which, in my opinion, makes her a much less sympathetic character. That being said, I also think Nev caught on to what she was doing a lot quicker than he may be willing to admit. It is quite obvious that some of the scenes in the documentary were either staged or recreated. In other words, I do not find Angela to be a sympathetic character but I also do not find Nev to be a sympathetic character either. He was sure that Megan, and everyone else for that matter, did not actually exist but he continued to play along (though with noticeably less enthusiasm). I cannot seem to shake the thought that Nev unnecessarily exploited Angela for a documentary. I am pretty sure we'll all want to talk about Angela in class next week, but I am also curious to know what everyone's thoughts are on Nev's role in this whole situation?