Online sex talk and the social world: Mediated desire by Chrystie Myketiak explores the online community of Walford (a multi-user domain (MUD) that is not principally organised around sex) and looks at users’ interactions in which sex, sexuality, and desire become relevant. In so doing, she sheds light into the ways that people make sense of their relationships, their community, broader social structures, and discourses of gender and sexuality more broadly. Drawing on feminist and queer theories as well as critical theory, Myketiak offers theoretical insight into how people realise and constitute their social worlds through their digitally mediated interactions.
In chapter 1, the author contextualises her study on the discursive construction of sex, sexuality, and desire. She first discusses bodies of literature on internet culture and online sexual activities and then introduces ‘communities of practices’, the analytic framework she uses to tap into MUD's interactions. In chapter 2, she provides a review of the research conducted within the field of language, gender, and sexuality and an overview of her framework. She also considers social aspects of sexuality vis-à-vis heteronormativity and explains how the latter sets the basis for what is seen as normative or sexually deviant.
In chapter 3, Myketiak explains how MUD operates (e.g. conversational settings, mode of communication) and discusses the methodological decisions she took (e.g. participant provided ongoing consent). In chapter 4, she explores the structure of interactions conveying sexual identities, preference, and practices, and she finds that participants disclose heterosexuality in various ways. Direct disclosure may include choosing gender names while indirect may be realised though references to heterosexual relationships. Myketiak argues that linguistic marking in the online community and in everyday social life sustains heteropatriarchal discourses and ideologies around sexualities and/or sexual practices (e.g. regarding what is seen as ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’)
In chapter 5, she addresses the form, function, and uses of sex talk in participants’ interactions (e.g. sexual joking to show group membership, reference of heterosexuality in chat groups to assert masculinity). In chapter 6 she examines the phenomena of chatbots and automated sexual commands (i.e. kiss and shag) within the Walford ecosystem. Although sexually explicit content is not allowed, Myketiak observes that sexual narratives are deployed for various purposes including social belonging.
In chapter 7, the author analyses examples of naturally occurring cybersex and focuses on heteronormativity and gender inequalities, amongst others. She concludes that the representation of discourses is hegemonic, which she links to the influence that mainstream heteronormative pornography has. In the final chapter, the author skilfully demonstrates the value of linguistic research on language gender and sexuality in digital environments (e.g. creating sex robots that challenge heteronormative ideologies around sex).
Overall, this book provides an accessible overview of the linguistic and discursive practices around sex, sexuality, and desire within an online community. It is an excellent resource for researchers and postgraduate students in disciplines such as linguistics and sociology who are interested in discourse analytic perspectives on language, gender, and sexuality in digitally mediated communication.
