#chaosmagic

i’ve been writing this book for what feels like forever.

not cause it's been YEARS, but cause those scenes and pages have seen parts of me that i hate, parts that i love, parts that i had forgotten and parts that i didn't even know were there.

(these past few years? intense. let's just leave it at that)

honestly, it started off as an AU from whatever shit i've been dealing with.

a place to hide from reality, from myself, from my own feelings - you know, those you try so hard to pretend that are not real?

i didn’t mean for it to become a world, or a love story, or a war between different parts of myself.

but it did.

there are archetypes. there’s magic that reacts to emotion.

there’s chaos that hums like a living thing.

and a girl who loves and breaks people she cares about in the same intensity.

so, this is a bookmark.

for me.

in case i forget that this story exists outside my head.

and maybe… if someone stumbles across it eventually —

hi. welcome.

The Founding Story of Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch, also known as Wanda Maximoff, is one of Marvel’s most enigmatic and powerful characters. Her journey from a misunderstood mutant to a reality-altering sorceress has captivated fans for decades. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, she first appeared in X-Men #4 in 1964 as a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants alongside her twin brother,…

Welcome back, my fellow digital mystics! During this last week, we are casting a light on a serious issue that haunts the magic of our online worlds: online harassment. While digital spaces are meant to be places of expression, creativity, and connection, they can also become breeding grounds for trolling, flaming, and personal attacks. From celebrity harassment to teenagers facing cyberbullying, the web can often feel like a battleground. So, let us dig into how harassment manifests in digital communities, the psychological toll it takes, and how social media platforms and governments are responding to this matter.

Online Harassment: More Than Just a Digital Nuisance

In the massive expanse of the internet, there are undeniably moments when the magic of communication turns dark. Online harassment is considered an umbrella term for a range of harmful behaviors—being called offensive names, threatened, impersonated, or even sexually harassed (Benrazek, 2025). Whether it is a comment section or social media posts, the digital world can often become a place of cruelty.

Celebrities are no strangers to online scrutiny, but for many, the pressure to meet impossible beauty standards or hold the “right” political opinions can turn into something far more toxic. Taylor Swift, Megan Thee Stallion, and Choi Sulli are just a few examples of public figures who have faced relentless bullying, body-shaming, and hate speech (Haslop et al., 2021).

For Choi Sulli, a South Korean actress and singer, the constant waves of online harassment became unbearable. In 2019, after years of facing cruel comments and public shaming, she tragically took her own life. Her passing shook South Korea, forcing a long-overdue conversation about the dangers of cyberbullying and the brutal reality of online abuse in a country where social media scrutiny can be relentless. Yet, despite the outcry, similar patterns of harassment continue today, proving just how deeply embedded this culture of digital cruelty has become.

However, it is not only celebrities who are affected by harassment—teenagers and young adults are among the most vulnerable groups. A Plan International study (2020) showed that 59% of girls across 31 countries experienced abusive language online, and teenagers are especially prone to psychological harm from online abuse. For many young people, harassment does not just hurt their feelings—it deeply affects their mental health. Anxiety, depression, and self-harm are all too common consequences of the emotional toll that constant online abuse takes. In some tragic cases, the relentless trolling and bullying can even lead to suicide.

Gender and Cultural Impacts

Online harassment is annoying or mean, and it has real consequences. The gendered aspect of online abuse is especially concerning, with women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and marginalized communities being disproportionately targeted. According to A Plan International study (2020), 59% of girls across 31 countries experienced abusive language online, with transgender individuals and women of color often face the harshest forms of abuse (Benrazek, 2025).

This issue is even amplified in places like South Korea, where celebrity culture intersects with social expectations. In a country with a high rate of cosmetic surgery and obsession with beauty standards, celebrities—particularly women—are relentlessly targeted for their appearance, lifestyle, and even personal choices. Cyberbullying and online harassment are particularly prevalent in the K-pop industry, where young idols often face derogatory comments, racist slurs, and gendered attacks from both fans and anonymous users. This toxic culture is so pervasive that it is contributed to the tragic deaths of several young idols such as Goo Hara and Kim Sae-ron, making South Korea one of the most harassment-prone countries when it comes to online abuse.

Combatting Online Harassment

Governments, platforms, and digital communities are slowly waking up to the dangers of online harassment. For instance, South Korea has enacted laws requiring social media companies to remove offensive content within 24 hours, aiming to hold platforms accountable for harmful material (Park, 2024). These regulations are part of broader efforts to combat the rise of non-consensual deepfake pornography, which has severely impacted women’s lives and exacerbated gender conflicts in the country (Kim, 2024).

Similarly, the Australian government passed the Online Safety Act 2021, designed to protect users from serious online abuse, including image-based abuse and cyberbullying (Johnson, 2021). The Act grants the eSafety Commissioner authority to enforce content removal within 24 hours and imposes substantial penalties on individuals and platforms that fail to comply (Smith, 2021).

Nonetheless, enforcement remains a significant challenge, particularly when platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter prioritize profit over user safety. Despite legislative measures, the sheer volume of online content and rapid technological advancements make it difficult to effectively monitor and eliminate harmful material (Lee, 2024).

If social media platforms are the enchanted castles of the digital realm, then it is about time they stop acting like cursed fortresses with broken gates. Platform responsibility is not some mystical prophecy—it’s a basic duty. Companies need to fortify their defenses, strengthen content moderation spells, and summon AI-powered guardians to detect and banish the dark forces of online harassment before they spread. Oh, and maybe—just maybe—make their terms of service less cryptic than an ancient scroll written in dragon’s tongue.

How Can We, as Digital Citizens, Help?

As digital citizens, we are not mere bystanders in the great, chaotic kingdom of the internet—we are its spellcasters, wardens, and protectors. That means we have a duty to make our online spaces safer, kinder, and far less cursed. Whether it is calling out harassment when we see it, offering support to those targeted, or wielding the mighty “report” button like a sacred relic, every action counts.

At the end of the day, the internet is what we make it. Only by joining forces—across communities, identities, and borders—can we forge a digital world where everyone, regardless of gender, race, or background, can exist without fear of being verbally hexed into oblivion. So, let us cast our collective protection spells, hold the right people accountable, and make the internet a place worth logging into.

And with that, my digital enchantment fades. For ten weeks, I have cast my thoughts across the great expanse of the internet, but now, my work here is done. Until we meet again, may your Wi-Fi be strong, your blocklist be long, and your digital spaces be ever protected.

References

Benrazek, Y 2025, ‘Digital Citizenship and Social Media Conflict’, Lecture Notes, Faculty of Media and Communication, MDA20009, Swinburne University.

Johnson, M 2021, ‘Australia’s Online Safety Act: A new approach to cyber abuse?’, Australian Policy Review, vol. 45, no. 3, pp. 78–92.

Haslop, C, O’Rourke, F & Southern, R 2021, ‘#NoSnowflakes: The Toleration of Harassment and an Emergent Gender-Related Digital Divide in UK Student Online Culture’, Convergence, vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 1418–1438.

Kim, J 2024, ‘South Korea’s fight against digital sex crimes and online abuse’, Korea Times, 12 March, viewed 18 March 2025, https://koreatimes.com/south-korea-digital-abuse.

Lee, S 2024, ‘Why enforcing online harassment laws is harder than it seems’, The Guardian, 5 February, viewed 18 March 2025, https://theguardian.com/enforcing-online-harassment-laws.

Park, H 2024, ‘Social media platforms in South Korea must remove harmful content within 24 hours’, Yonhap News Agency, 20 January, viewed 18 March 2025, https://yonhapnews.com/social-media-law.

Plan International 2020, Free-to-Be-Online: A Global Report on Online Abuse, Plan International, viewed 15 March 2025, https://plan-international.org/free-to-be-online.