Internet
Troll
WHAT IS A
TROLL?
1. An
Internet "
Troll" is a person who delights in sowing discord on the
Internet. He (and it is usually he) tries to start arguments and upset people.
2. Trolls see
Internet communications services as convenient venues for their bizarre game. For some reason, they don't "get" that they are hurting real people. To them, other Internet users are not quite human but are a kind of digital abstraction. As a result, they feel no sorrow whatsoever for the pain they inflict. Indeed, the greater the suffering they cause, the greater their 'achievement' (as they see it). At the moment, the relative anonymity of the net allows trolls to flourish.
3. Trolls are utterly impervious to criticism (constructive or otherwise). You cannot negotiate with them; you cannot cause them to feel shame or compassion; you cannot reason with them. They cannot be made to feel remorse. For some reason, trolls do not feel they are bound by the rules of courtesy or social responsibility.
4. Perhaps this sounds inconceivable. You may think, "Surely there is something I can write that will change them." But a true
troll can not be changed by mere words.
