Jonathan Franzen: Liking Is For What Hurts

Technology has made communication easier by connecting people globally through social media. However, with a constant barrage of attention, people find it necessary to always be connected. Humans are social creatures that crave attention and praise. With technological development,

We live in a world where the internet and social media plays a big role. There are constantly becoming less and less physical contact, and fewer face-to -face relations. This is demonstrated by the fact that we keep in touch with each other over Facebook, shopping takes place over the internet, we keep up with our economy whit online banking and meet friends and lovers over online dating sites. In late modern society, we are always available. But are we really missing out on a lot of important stuff, and is this necessarily a bad thing? This is also the theme in Jonathan Franzen’s essay, “Liking is for Cowards. Go for What Hurts” from 2011. The focus in this essay will be on how Jonathan Franzen

“Liking Is for Cowards. Go for What Hurts” is an essay by Jonathan Franzen. The essay was published May 2011 inside The New York Times. It is based on his speech at Kenyon College, Ohio, USA.

Most people are uptight about the likes and comments they receive on social media websites, Carr formally proclaims. All of the popular websites use this method to receive more people active on them. Doing this urges people to share personal details about their life. “...people share four times as much information about themselves when they converse through computers as when they talk in person” (Carr 3). It is not necessary for people to share an extreme amount of details about their lives, but they still do.

Some do not want to be overly concerned with technology or social media and there are those who cannot live without them being glued to their phones embracing that glow of screens. Courtesy of Dave Parrack’s article The Positive Impact of Social Networking Sites on Society, goes on to discuss that it is a good notion that we stay connected to our world to maintain or make new friends is easier now with phones/social networks. How some see the oversharing of personal life is daunting there are those who see it is a way to relate to others, vent out what’s going on, to share and be apart of something bigger. Parrack’s approach is that there are some bad points in social media and technology, but there are also good aspects of it that to some balance it all out he goes on to remark, “It’s clear to see what some people would conceive as negative can be also positives.” (Dave Parrack’s article The Positive Impact of Social Networking Sites on Society).

In addition, big corporations have power to control our digital experience and foster conformity. The ideas that circulate the internet can foster a negative notion of self-esteem and image. At the end of the day, we have to realize that technology has some of its benefits but it also adheres ramifications. We have to be wary of the benefits and the harmful effects that play in our life. We also have to be aware of the effect that technology has on others, such as having a phone out during a conversation aiding ill-mannerism. Technology connects us in many ways but it also distances us. It creates dissonance when we are having a face-to-face interactions and the other person is distracted because of their phone. Superficially, we know a lot about one another through social media but we actually don't know the in depth story. There are many bad information out there and that sometimes messes with our sense of judgement. Through the many facets of social media, we express ourselves differently in variety of platforms. This can affect the sense of self and the real identity of yourself. The web can be a chaotic place with masses of information but with that comes the responsibility of finding the right information and reaping the

“The Facebook Sonnet” by Sherman Alexie brings up ideas and controversy over social media because it decreases face-to-face communication. Though Facebook allows people to contact old and new friends, it renders away from the traditional social interaction. Online, people are easily connected by one simple click. From liking one’s status to posting multiple pictures, Facebook demands so much attention that it’s easy for users to get attach. They get caught up in all the online aspect of their lives that they fail to appreciate real life relationships and experiences. Within Alexie’s diction and tone, “The Facebook Sonnet” belittles the social media website by showing how society are either focused on their image or stuck in the past to

efficient, they say”. (Turkle 272) People try to keep things short and sweet. Social technology provides people way to achieve this expectation. While helps people create distances with others and show perfect status, social technology acts as haven, making people feel safe. People edit and reorganize their words, retouch their selfies to be perfect to avoid revealing their weaknesses and defects. People are so afraid of revealing too much so they are more willing to lose the real part of

The first article chosen about this event was focusing on the iPhone’s newest features and how it compares to the last release of iPhones. The newest iPhones are faster, have better camera quality, and feature a structure made out of complete glass. What strikes me is that our society has taken this phone and given it such high regards so that we feel we NEED it. In the article, Manjoo quotes “And while experts said Apple’s lead might slip over time, for now, its advantage remains enormous enough to make the iPhone a must for people who think of their phones as their most important computing device — in other words, you and me and everyone we know”. This symbolizes iPhones in our culture as a cultural object, something we have highly regarded, and by definition is something that has a creator, and “has a shared significance; it has been given a meaning shared by members of the culture” (20). We feel as though we cannot live without our phones, making it a part of our daily lives, and leaving Apple with the upper hand on us.

Have you ever worried about the amount of likes and comments you get on your social media posts? An article titled, “The Like Button Ruined the Internet” by James Somers analyzes how social media has ruined society’s views on the subject. People care about the amount of likes and comments they receive on social media posts because it inflicts pleasure towards them. Once a person is enamored with receiving likes or comments, the internet will start to ruin society. Most people love social media and the unhealthy addiction is ruining the purpose of it. The inflicting pleasure people receive from their amount of likes and comments is starting to control them.

With new technical breakthroughs happening every minute, technology is advancing far beyond our imagination. The internet has become increasingly accessible with new smartphones and smart devices, and with them came new social media applications. Social media has now become a large factor in the lives of many people across the globe as a means of finding and distributing information. People spend more and more time on the internet, and less time having face to face human interactions. Instead of human interactions and networking, popularity and social status is now based on friends on Facebook, followers on Twitter, and Instagram “likes”. The lack of meaningful social interactions has caused an increase in mental health issues such as social anxiety and depression, and adversely impacts human society. Digital technology negatively affects happiness because it causes loneliness, mental illness and a disconnection from the real world.

A text message or a phone was checked before reading this. It goes to show; technology is taking over people’s lives because everywhere someone goes technology exists. However, technology acts as a basic necessity for this generation because every question, game, or conversation happens at his or her disposal. But with the emergence of social media, people swarm Facebook or Instagram posting explicit photos or ridiculing others in order to achieve self-confidence. Technology has provided the misguided confidence society has direly waited. Do people really have such low self esteem that the number of likes dictates their popularity and looks? Nobody is to blame but him or herself for letting a piece of equipment command their lives. Everything happens on people’s phones these days. The need to go outside vanished because technology acts as a world itself. People are isolating themselves from their friends and family in order to be on Facebook. An analysis on technology reveals that technology has led to deaths, broken relationships, and insecurities.

Social media has become a significant aspect and influence in today’s society. Whether it’s connecting with family and friends, increase in productivity, building one’s self-esteem or its influence in pop culture. On the other hand, the price to pay for social media is its expectations, in particular, the ones it sets for relationships in the digital world. Social media is responsible for creating unrealistic and unattainable expectations which results in making people believe in the false illusions of the “perfect couple” or hashtag boyfriend girlfriend goals as projected on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Such false expectations and impractical norms leads to constantly comparing one’s relationship with others, false ideas of a healthy relationship and could result in jeopardizes one’s own relationship with their current or future partner.

Most of us use social media to communicate with our family, friends and our loved once. Since almost all of my friends live 8000 mile away, I use Facebook, Instagram, and viber to keep in touch with them. Bur recently I started noticing it has become more than a means of communication. I start posting a picture and obsesses about how many likes I get, checking other peoples Facebook just to see if they have more friends than me, believing every post without questioning if it’s a fact and funny enough I start sending friend request for people I don’t even know. Christine Rosen, a senior editor of the New Atlantis and resident fellow at the Ethics and Public policy Center in Wessington, D.C. on “In the Beginning Was the World”, she wrote how technology is affecting the society’s critical reading ability. Peggy Orenstein, an author and a contributing writer for the New York Times, on “I Tweet, Therefore I Am” she talks about how social media is distracting as from fully live in the moment. Even though the development of technology have increased the quality of life, it also brought undeniable challenges to our society. The constant use of social media and internet has increase society attention-seeking, Distracted, and decries critical reading. The use of social media has increased dramatically throughout the years.

Social media has helped create or perpetuate a false sense of relationships. Friendships are not the same as followers on Twitter. We can’t equate our friendship with likes on Instagram. We settle for substitutes for real relationships but end up lacking the kind of friends who bring their life into ours.