Symbolic Interaction, Vol. 33, Issue 2, pp. 297–318, ISSN 0195-6086, electronic ISSN 1533-8665. © 2010 by the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permis- sion to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press’s Rights and Permissions website, at http://www.ucpressjournals.com/reprintinfo.asp. DOI: 10.1525/si.2010.33.2.297. Now the Orgy Is Over Dennis D. Waskul Minnesota State University, Mankato Justin A. Martin Minnesota State University, Mankato Based on six months of ethnographic fieldwork, this study explores the intersections between embodied flesh and digital (re)presentations by examining how participants experience virtual sex on Second Life. We explore how and to what extent Second Life avatars mediate personal desires and fantasies with others who, collaboratively, construct sexual adventures in forms of playful deviance that allow for the emergence of secret sexual selves, as well as how those sexual adventures are ul- timately fashioned and experienced in a “diffused life” that is neither of Second Life nor of first but a tightly bound combination of the two. Despite the enormous freedom of Second Life residents for seemingly boundless creative self-expression, we conclude that these experienc- es are more bound to and confined within disciplined practices than they first appear. Keywords: Internet sex, Second Life, secret sexual selves, playful deviance March 27, 2009: I am seated in front of a fireplace on a plush sectional style couch in a large room tastefully decorated with Victorian furniture. A white fur rug covers the floor, and stained glass windows cast a dim light. The chic paintings on the wall de- pict various orgy scenes, which is appropriate for the moment. It is Friday afternoon; the regularly scheduled orgy has just begun. Behind me is Bethany Pike—a key informant in this study. 1 Bethany is a tall, thin, Caucasian woman with long blonde hair, long legs, and large breasts. Bethany doesn’t look much older than twenty-five. She is the owner of this lavish home and the host of this invitation-only party. Bethany is lying naked on a table enjoy- ing a loud and rowdy three-way with Ken and John who also appear to be in their midtwenties. They are tall, Caucasian, and both have short brown hair and sculpted muscular physiques. Shawn is standing beside the three-way; he’s just watching and Direct all correspondence to Dennis D. Waskul, Department of Sociology and Corrections, Min- nesota State University, Mankato, 113 Armstrong Hall, Mankato, MN 56001; e-mail: dennis.waskul@ mnsu.edu.