Aristotle On Trolling

[ñͤͣ̄ͦ̌̑͗͊͛͂͗ ̸̨̨̣̺̼̣̜͙͈͕̮̊̈́̈͂͛̽͊ͭ̓͆ͅé ̰̓̓́ͯ́́͞]

That trolling is a shameful thing, and that no one of sense would accept to be called ‘troll’, all are agreed; but what trolling is, and how many its species are, and whether there is an excellence of the troll, is unclear. And indeed trolling is said in many ways; for some call ‘troll’ anyone who is abusive on the internet, but this is only the disagreeable person, or in newspaper comments the angry old man. And the one who disagrees loudly on the blog on each occasion is a lover of controversy, or an attention-seeker. And none of these is the troll, or perhaps some are of a mixed type; for there is no art in what they do. (Whether it is possible to troll one's own blog is unclear; for the one who poses divisive questions seems only to seek controversy, and to do so openly; and this is not trolling but rather a kind of clickbait.)

The rest is here: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=6&fid=10293504&jid=APA&volumeId=-1&issueId=-1&aid=10293503&bodyId=&membershipNumber=&societyETOCSession=&fulltextType=RA&fileId=S2053447716000099

And a critical response is here: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=3&fid=10294578&jid=APA&volumeId=-1&issueId=-1&aid=10283850&bodyId=&membershipNumber=&societyETOCSession=&fulltextType=RA&fileId=S2053447716010078

Quite on the nose and a good read.

[Vanadium Gryllz]

That response perfectly captures my thoughts on the piece. 

It seems well written and thought-out but doesn't cover a lot of new ground. Maybe it's not supposed to.

I'm also confused as to why Aristotle has been dragged into this.

[The Wizard Joseph]

I'm also confused as to why Aristotle has been dragged into this.

To lend a sensible veneer to the author attempting to shackle the eternal mysteries of the troll with base description and comforting definitions and morality.

To understand the lulz you must take them unto your bosom, nurture them from your own self, and let them grow in power. When they burst out through you in their fullness, as the xenomorph breaches the sternum, all reason is washed away in a tide of pure joy! Then will the lulz guide your hand. Then the path of the troll becomes solid under your feet and all burden lifts.


This was a really great find NET!