What are trolls like in real life?
On the internet a troll likes to create trouble, stir up emotions. Are they like that in real life too?
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For some reason I have trouble picturing trolls as real people. And I’ve met some pretty bad trolls (not on this site). I could not picture them as a real person.
But to answer the question: I don’t know as I’ve never met anyone in real life I met online.
From my experience, manny of them have recently lost their jobs, and are extremely frustrated with their current life situation.
I’ve also seen trolls who are lonely kids and are seeking attention and validation.
There’s also those who feel that it is their duty to crusade against viewpoints that they believe are harmful—or rail against seeming injustices or incorrectness. It’s a vindictive type of warped honor.
On-line trolls does not necessarily have to be off-line trolls. But rest assured, the real world is ripe with trolls. In the world of bureaucracy some people are very nice and helpful, others are propagators of red tape and generally obtrusive without any reason – those are examples of off-line trolls. I wonder what they are like on-line.
Trolling cover too much territory as a blanket term. Some trolls are offensive, some irritating, some amusing, some obviously ignorant and trying to defend their point of view. I can imagine that many would be very different in real life – some pretty much as they appear to be on line. Many are certainly kids – that is apparent by the timing – school breaks brings them out in force.
I picture them as the closest thing possible to a real troll: a 13–17 year old kid that still hasn’t quite hit puberty yet. He has a greasy skin and a crooked back + hanging shoulders (from all the wedgies he gets).
I wish it was that simple though, as always there is more than meets the eye. You know how a lot of people grow bitter over time, I always imagined trolling as one of the early stages of that disease.
They are essentially attention-seekers. I would imagine they look and act like your standard class-clown type, perhaps: sloppy, borderline bad hygiene (with the result of gross teeth and complexion, ill-fitting clothing, the odor of baked-ham, very fidgety, sit at the computer in the basement of their parents house, in dirty underwear and stretched out socks, etc.
Not that there is anything wrong with any of these characteristics, but the whole package might be problematic to a healthy social life.
Most of us have cause to be angry at the world because we all look pretty much like this. The image is from this page.
I should add that I was essentially, and perhaps incorrectly, speaking of only one type. Someone who prefers to constantly dissent in their opinion or play devil’s advocate, I see nothing wrong with. I was thinking mostly of the kids who constantly leave annoying and uninteresting comments, with the sole intention of provoking people; one who will very often end up spamming a site.
I think the troll image originally came from this book: link
How do you know which ones are trolls?
The one Online Troll who I ever met in real life was the biggest nerd ever. He spoke like he was in a chat room. He was a small, awful man, easily laughed off as rediculous.
Though there are quite a number of IRL trolls who have perfected the art of in-person craziness.
I’ve met my fair share of troublemakers in real life, and I suppose they’d be online trolls, but remember the rule of horror movies, “Serial killers look just like everybody else.” Defining a ‘troll’ is harder than it looks.
They are often socially clueless, angry people. They can be teens unable to be rebellious within “real” life, 40 yr old dudes living in their parents basement or anyone that doesn’t fit into any known social circle.
<—- doesn’t fit in any known social circle; isn’t a troll.
I too don’t fit into any social circles! My trolldom is debatable, I’m leaning towards “not” though
@mattbrowne But her mustache makes her so adorable & approachable~ ;D
They are phony. Overly friendly yes men. Butter wouldn’t melt in their mouths. Most of them are very lonely marginalized people seething from their wedgie wounds they earned in kindergarten. Still eating boogers and making star trek sound effects in their everyday lives. Still secretly sure they are the smartest kid on the block and that all the other kids are just jealous. They get online and they rule the world, they become the bully they feared. They feel emboldened by the safety of anonymity. They seek their revenge for a life time of invisibility.
Well, actually, I was with my friends while they trolled Yahoo Answers. They’re just normal people who were looking for some shits and giggles. But they’re not long-term trolls.
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