On Virtual Practice

In the prolonged development course of the human society, human activities and technological revolutions are infiltrating and reinforcing each other. As a result, many kinds of theories and ideologies come into being. Virtual technology risen at the end of the 20thcentury and its co-existing product----virtual practice are an entire new outcome of themutual effects of human activities and technological revolutions, and an inexorable result of the human former activities conforming to the logical and historical development. Virtual practice maintained by virtual technology explores an unprecedented world of human activities in a new space, and expands the range of human activities into an unknown field, giving a full show of subjective activity and creativity of human. At the same time, new technology and human activities are affecting and changing the human life mode, and challenging the traditional culture, ideas and theories more and more. Just as what Michael Heim said in the preface of his work The Metaphysics of Virtual Reality: Virtual reality is not only a kind of technology and its effect does not only remain on the level of human life, either. It is its hidden effect that will be likely to define the culture produced by its use.Facing the great challenge brought by virtual technology and virtual activities, some basic theories and ideas of Marxist philosophy on practice are experiencing new challenges and going through a new period of development opportunity. To analyze and summarize human activities in the condition of virtual technology on philosophical level is an inexorable requirement that Marxist on practice answers the present challenges and searches for an effective way to resolve the dilemma. And it is also a new call of times for the researchers on Marxist philosophy.First, the essay begins with the historical development of the mutual relations between technological revolutions and human activities, draws forth the great characteristics ofhuman activities changing for virtual orientation, and elaborates the historical reasonabilityof the category----virtual practice. And then define virtual and virtual practice on thephilosophical level, give virtual practice a profound analysis on the philosophical ground and expound its reasonability. At the same time, give more discussion about the features and value function of virtual practice. At last, on the basis of the macro-check, focus on one of the challenges which Marxism is facing in the condition of virtual technology — the concept of practice. And have an analysis and comparison at connotation and denotation aspects of the practice concept of Marxist philosophy in the background of the traditional material space and the virtual electronic space. Found after study, virtual practice is an inexorable extension of the traditional human activities. And it is not like what some researchers says that virtual practice has already jeopardized the existing reasonability of the traditional practice concept of Marxist philosophy , and not like what they regards that virtual practice is a denial of the traditional practice concept of Marxist philosophy and a deviation from the traditional practice concept of Marxist philosophy. On the contrary, virtual practice puts forward a new research topic for us how to understand and bring out the essence of the traditional practice concept of Marxist philosophy more accurately and thoroughly, and it provides new nourishment for the development of the practice concept of Marxist philosophy. The fundamental tenets of the practice concept of Marxist philosophy are still applicable. What we need to do is to carry on and develop it, but not to reject totally.