The Ethics of Digital Self: Consequences of Online Morality in The Nether

Abstract

This research discovers the ethical dimensions of the digital self and the results regarding online morality through the medium of Jennifer Harley’s dystopian play called the Nether (2013). As one of the digital innovations continuously dissipates the known boundaries between virtuality and reality, the idea of a self that continues to exist both offline and online causes pressing philosophical and moral queries. Technologies. Addressing through present day scholarship in relation to digital ethics, this study contests that virtual roles, which seems to be detached from the physical reality can change moral thinking, accountability and identity in the practical world. The research positions the Nether within the arguments on digital and morality to highlight how the drama shows issues of justice, responsibility and desire are immersed in the virtual domains. Applying interdisciplinary method, the study combines ethical theory and literary analysis to show that the digital self cannot be separated from the consequences of its actions as there are serious legal and psychological implications with regards to online behaviours. Consequently, this study asserts that Haley’s play an essential role in the perception of the ethics of the digital time and offers a useful insight into how societies can regulate and control morality in the digital period.