R: Take Off the Mask

Your authentic self—do you know him or her? The virtue of honesty is expressed, in part, by authenticity and openness with others. But what to do when you've confused identity with presentation? Disentangling the two to discover your authentic self is an onerous task that requires careful reflection. More troubling still is confronting the person underneath. But then, one might argue that it is better to censor the self, including all its savage behaviors, ideas and eccentricities. In any case, how does the mask relate to online personae and anonymity in the digital age? I’ll leave you with the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Society is a masked ball, where everyone hides his real character, and reveals it by hiding.”