Digital Animism: Towards a New Materialism

With the advent of ‘the virtual world,’ we have naturally gauged ‘reality’ in terms how close it comes to empirical experience. However, common association simulation depends on a representational dualism that reduces simulacrum reality and prevents us from seeing its real import. Virtuality, rather than related simulation, refers instead potentiality. Far being something first appears with digital-virtual as technological constitutes bare potentiality intrinsic human experience, always subject modulation. Despite path increasing abstraction marked by evolution technologies communication, I argue world, paradoxically, reveals matter ineluctably vital permanent movement transformation. The digital thus does away responsible for modern disenchantment nature and—decentering human, placing equally part rhizomatic entangled nature—lays groundwork an animistic ontology is consonant new materialism.