Abstract Berlin: Cordelia Berz 

What Is My Relationship with My Avatar?

The rise of virtual reality has sparked interest in understanding the nature of virtual objects, that is, objects contained within virtual worlds. Chalmers (2017) argues for virtual digitalism, positing that virtual objects are digital, i.e. (to a first approximation) made up of bits. However, this leaves open the question of the relationship between virtual and physical objects. Our paper addresses this gap by focusing on the relationship between individuals and their virtual avatars. Using modal logic, we investigate whether theories of transworld identity or counterpart relations can shed light on this relationship. Using Chihara's S5 quantificational modal logic framework, we find that counterpart theory better accommodates features such as asymmetry and the potential for multiple avatars. However, we argue for a refined counterpart relation that includes factors such as avatar control in determining someone's counterpart.