Virtuality Machines

Modernity is facing a pronounced deficit of the real, prompting philosophy to undertake efforts to ‘unmask’ the nature of virtuality. The scope of the concept of virtual reality is continually expanding, with its content allegedly characterized as ‘invalid’ and/or ‘simulative’. In addition to that, the ideas of the real and the virtual are converging in a diffusive process. This article proposes a framework for understanding virtuality that utilizes classical ontological concepts to examine the practical mediation between reality and virtual reality. The first section discusses the theoretical challenges that arise in conceptualizing virtual reality. It concludes that virtual reality is more an act of realization manifested through the activities of both ontological and ontic subject, rather than a distinct entity. The second section analyzes individuals as subjects of such realization following Nikolai A. Nosov's research into virtual psychology. It also emphasizes the importance of those systems through which reality undergoes virtualization. The third section introduces the concept of a virtuality machine to analyze these mediators facilitating the transition from the constant to virtual reality. Since media philosophy tends to posit that media is far from being neutral, this section explores various media/mediators of virtuality machines: including chemical, computational, and musical. The author examines both the potential threats posed by virtuality machines and their promising applications. The concluding section proposes that a virtuality machine has the potential to evolve into a virtus machine, a tool that could enhance rather than alienate human nature.