Nev and his friends did not start filming Nev’s life because they thought that something big was going to happen. They simply started filming. When they learned of the child prodigy Nev was in communication with, it only made their filming more interesting. I don’t think that this documentary is a fake documentary, the way I feel Banksy’s documentary, Exit through the Giftshop, was, but I do think that Nev’s friends just happened to be extremely lucky in that they were able to capture this incredible story.
Angela’s betrayal does not concern me as much as I am concerned for her mental health. Clearly, this is a sad woman. Her life was so depressing that she only felt better by living as though she was someone else. This was not a random event that Angela pretended to be someone else just one time. Angela physically had to create each and every one of those fake profiles that she was using to talk to Nev for months at a time to try to fool him into thinking that she was who she said she was. I believe that she was using twelve profiles to convince him? I personally just find that to be someone who needs some help. Angela is a pathological liar, and I think that the magnitude of her deceit is warrant enough for her to speak to some kind of psychiatrist.
Angela lied about her daughter, Abby, being the one to paint all of the illustrations she was showing to Nev. Angela lied about being her daughter, Megan, while talking to Nev. She then lied and said that Megan was in an alcoholic facility. Angela lied and said that she had cancer. Angela lied to her husband and said that Nev was buying her artistry. Every time Angela spoke, she was lying. Even when she “came clean” with Nev, she lied. And for me, I believe that her lying about having cancer is the most despicable one of all. Cancer is a serious illness, and anyone who can treat it as cavalierly as to lying about it should be ashamed. I am disgusted that someone would pretend to be going through such a terrible ordeal to get sympathy from a stranger.
While my disgust is great, part of me truly does feel bad for Angela. It depresses me to know how bad some people’s lives are in this world, and how unhappy some people are without anyone ever knowing it. I am a fairly happy person myself, and it seems weird to me that people go every day hating their lives. I think Angela created this other world that she shared with Nev because she was disappointed in herself and the real world that she lived in. She needed an escape from the disappointments in her life. But even though I can find sympathy with someone who feels this way, I just can’t get over how the whole thing affects Nev. Not only was Nev being lied to about the paintings, but Nev had thought he was falling in love with Megan. Can you imagine the heartbreak that comes with finding out that the girl of your dreams is actually a married forty year old woman? Very creepy.
This just shows though how society has changed with the advancements in technology. Before the internet, there was no way that a woman could create this kind of lie easily. There could be phone conversations, but with Facebook showing pictures of the people you are talking to creates a trust between the two strangers. We feel that we know people because we are invited into their lives via Facebook before we’ve ever met them. Even with the first web, Web 1.0, this was not possible. With Web 2.0, anyone is able to upload any picture they want to and can call it their own. People are able to express themselves much more easily and strangers can be unified through their mutual interests. Nev and Angela would have never been so a part of each other’s lives if it weren’t for the internet.
With democratized media, Angela was able to be the photograph her paintings and put them on the internet to be shown to the public. She wrote that it was her daughter, a child, who had painted them and even posted pictures of Abby pretending to paint. A child who can paint so well will gain much more publicity than an older woman who can paint well, which is why I believe Angela lied about that. She knew that the only way people would want to see her paintings was if there was something special about them, and those kind of incredible artworks coming from a little girl would get a lot more attention than hers would. Democratized media makes this possible. Before the internet, a person could say that their child was an incredible artist, but it wouldn’t be anywhere near as publicized as it is today.
Sites like Facebook, MySpace, or any online dating site makes it possible for people like Angela to create fake personas to trick others into believing that they are someone who they are not. It was easy for Angela to make Nev believe that she was Megan because she was able to so easily make a fake profile in order to pretend to be someone else. The internet causes problems like this in society today because it is so easily accessible to every person. This is one of the most beneficial parts of the internet, because it is for the common people, but it is also one of its downfalls, because it is a place for those with bad intentions to roam. But, with any great advancement comes negative consequences as well. And I think that the benefits of the internet far outweigh its dangers.
People like Nev just need to use a bit more caution when it comes to people they meet on the internet. Sites like Facebook and MySpace try to protect its users, but it’s very difficult to keep every negative person out, so it’s up to the user to be careful with whomever they talk to. Online dating services are very protective of their clients by making everyone fill out lots of informational applications, but still every person should learn how to protect themselves. This article has some useful tips on protecting oneself online:
Web 2.0 is an incredible thing, but it’s necessary to learn how to exercise caution while using it. It gives way for people like Angela to take advantage of unsuspecting people like Nev.
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