Facebook and Fun

The conclusion of Daniel Miller's "Tales From Facebook" explore numerous aspects that Facebook has in the present socialization of Facebook users. The conclusion explores many ways in which Facebook is transforming the understanding people have of socializing and creating an identity among groups of friends. Miller discusses the conflicting ideas of the creation of self on Facebook, discussing whether or not the "truer" person is the Facebook version or the real life person. This was interesting to read because most would assume the real you is the one in person, but some argue that the way someone manifests their Facebook page is a truer understanding of their person.

This could be easier to understand by remembering that Facebook is, generally, a place where people that know each other in real life already go to socialize. There is already some establishment of persona before Facebook interaction begins. In a way, Facebook can be a place for a greater understanding of a person, but not the sole resource for creating an understanding of somebody. This could help explain why many people feel depressed after going on Facebook. We have an understanding of somebody, then we go on Facebook and see this amplified and deepened, and often we feel inadequate in comparison. This is especially harder on those in high school where the acceptance and relations to peers is greatest. This could also, perhaps, lead to people trying to emulate a persona on Facebook that many of their friends will likely be able to see through. That fact, though, creates yet another dynamic for how people understand each other.

Facebook is obviously not the only, and maybe not the greatest, way in which people create and understand social relationships, but it is becoming a ever greater one. Facebook is a way in which many people represent themselves to the world and their peers, how they want to be viewed. Whether or not we believe what is put forth, we are allowed a greater understanding of a person to contribute to what we have already established about them.