LH Social Network Sites And Its False Illusion Of Friendship Final Draft 1
Lakesa Haines
Professor Veitch
ENG 112 WB
4 March 2015
Social Networking Sites and It’s False Illusion of Friendship “I have over 200 friends that I communicate with on a daily basis”. This is an all too common expression that is heard among our society lately. Kids, family, and even co-workers discuss the thought of having a great and rewarding social life. How could anyone have that many friends and maintain quality, worthwhile relationships? Social networking sites provide the illusion that friendships consist of an easily clicked “like” button and reading someone’s thought of the day whether it be personal or political. Social networking sites have occupied minds with the impersonal security of real friendship and create a false sense of community, thereby causing its users to spend less time interacting face-to face, and leaving the younger generation a fabricated and distorted logic of how to interact with “real” friends. This is a sign that society should get back to the time where “real” friendships are valued. Social networking sites create the illusion of a rich and meaningful social life, but in reality they encourage isolation and create antisocial habits and behaviors in a new generation of young people. Opponents argue that social networking sites were created to connect people, an their benefits are apparent every time a missing person is found thanks to fast “shares” and the quick spread of news that social media allows. In addition, opponents also argue that social networking sites are a great way to support a social life and bring people closer together. For example, if you live a busy life it can be difficult to keep in touch with everyone in your world. Further, opponents believe having an online social presence gives users the ability to add people as friends so that you can easily keep in touch with them, creating a controlled environment that does not leave room for rejection or awkward social situations that can arise in person. Some
Professor Veitch
ENG 112 WB
4 March 2015
Social Networking Sites and It’s False Illusion of Friendship “I have over 200 friends that I communicate with on a daily basis”. This is an all too common expression that is heard among our society lately. Kids, family, and even co-workers discuss the thought of having a great and rewarding social life. How could anyone have that many friends and maintain quality, worthwhile relationships? Social networking sites provide the illusion that friendships consist of an easily clicked “like” button and reading someone’s thought of the day whether it be personal or political. Social networking sites have occupied minds with the impersonal security of real friendship and create a false sense of community, thereby causing its users to spend less time interacting face-to face, and leaving the younger generation a fabricated and distorted logic of how to interact with “real” friends. This is a sign that society should get back to the time where “real” friendships are valued. Social networking sites create the illusion of a rich and meaningful social life, but in reality they encourage isolation and create antisocial habits and behaviors in a new generation of young people. Opponents argue that social networking sites were created to connect people, an their benefits are apparent every time a missing person is found thanks to fast “shares” and the quick spread of news that social media allows. In addition, opponents also argue that social networking sites are a great way to support a social life and bring people closer together. For example, if you live a busy life it can be difficult to keep in touch with everyone in your world. Further, opponents believe having an online social presence gives users the ability to add people as friends so that you can easily keep in touch with them, creating a controlled environment that does not leave room for rejection or awkward social situations that can arise in person. Some
Cited: Greig, Alex “All the Lonely Facebook Friends: Study Shows Social Media Makes Us More Lonely and Unhappy and Less Sociable” Dailymail.com N.p 12 September 2013. Web 22 February 2015 Huff A. Ethan “Social Networking Sites Leads to Isolation, Not More Connections, Says Academics” Natualnews.com N.p 27 June 2011. Web 22 February 2015 Laird Sam “Is Social Media Destroying Real World Relationships” Mashable.com N.P 14 June 2012. Web 22 February 2015 Chayka, Kyle. "Let’S Really Be Friends." New Republic 246.2/3 (2015): 8-9. Academic Search Premier. Web. 8 March, 2015.