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Ricardo Salinas
Professor Beadle

English 115

06 December 2017

The Social Monster

The internet and social media are spaces that hold demons that shape our society. Cell

phones give us opportunities to connect with other people through experiences weve gained by

having our own monsters. The monsters inside bring heavy burdens that lead to the lack of social

interaction and minimal self-control. With cell phones giving us easy access to social media and

the internet, it can deprive us of human interaction at the press of a button. Social media and the

internet detach us from reality and puts us into a alternate reality of a repetitive cycle that diverts

our attention to checking Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and much more. We fuel this cycle

with our own time as we lifelessly look into our cell phone screens for the majority of our day,

and ultimately the majority of our lives. Thus, we disregard the significant values of our own

lives, our limited time, productivity, and the meaning of socializing in a community. Although,

cell phones do connect us to the world around us, it also has a side effect of redefining the

definition of socialization. Its definition transitions us into locking ourselves in a bubble; in our

own world, surrounded by strangers in their own world. It is when we use this monster properly

that we become better as a society. When we use cell phones to access the internet and social

media it should be for the benefit us rather than to consume us.

Social media and the internet do not have the qualification of a stereotypical depiction of

a monstrous creature. Yet, they can be mirrors based on our everyday activities in society such as

being on our phones. Although, social media and the internet revolutionized the way human
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beings get information, communicate, and interact with one another, it negatively impacts

socialization in our local community. For instance, I find it hard not to be concerned when I see a

group of people sitting together, each engrossed in his or her own cell phone. Even my fellow

colleague and I take part in this addiction. This observation was only possible when I decide to

step out of the cycle and witness face-to-face human interaction beginning to deteriorate. This

generates a debate over the nature of that how we perceive cell phones effect in lessening the

amount of social interaction and its irreversible effect on the significance. Being able to simply

contact someone in a matter of seconds without much effort is a luxury, however, it is also a

double-edged blade mankind has adapted to.

In Chuck Klostermans article, My Zombie, Myself: Why Modern Life Feels Rather

Undead, Klostermans multiple symbolic view of social media and thoughtless routines

corresponds with having a lack of self-control, causing us to restrain our lives by looking at a

phone screen. He informs his audience that he views daily life like being a zombie (Klosterman

41). Klostermans argument of human life becoming decease can possible be avoided if each as

an individual to comes up with more innovative ways to make life interesting and less dreadful,

instead of wasting our time in the possibly promising idea of connecting with friends through

social media. We must also face the consideration of losing a connection with our surroundings

when using our cell phone in public. From personal experience and observation in public, people

have their heads down, walking around as a community of zombies, oblivious to potential allies,

close friends or even our future spouse--possibilities that die as our life is sucked into our

phones. Our cell phones create great distances, despite being a few feet away as we connect to

social media, thus making them a key factor in the decline of social interaction.
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Social interaction is declining with cellular devices controlling what we focus on in a

daily basis. However, cellular devices can be avoided in most people's lives, only being used in

necessary situations. In Marcos Suliveres article, The Death of Real World Interaction?,

Suliveres strongly believes that social media can have catastrophic effects on humans, but only if

it is used to replace human interaction, rather than enhance it (Suliveres). For example, we have

a tendency to use cellular device to escape or avoid a social interaction with a stranger we see

walking the opposite directions from us. This can provoke a false sense of connection, as cell

phones can be used to escape an awkward moment. This is just one example of why we would

divert our attention elsewhere. It contradicts the meaning of social media and alters the world

to an antisocial community.

The continuation of internet and social media can influence future generation to not

improve on the social interaction we lack today. In the graphic guide to writing Understanding

Rhetoric by Jonathan Alexander and Elizabeth Losh discussed Platos thoughts that vivid

media experiences showing explicit sex and violence would have a bad influence on young

people (Alexander & Losh 41). Social media and the internet can heavily influence the young

generations moral compass towards current issues in todays society. However, the digital world

can give us knowledge to what is happening, whether good or bad. It is the hand of the user that

leads to how social media and the internet will impact our lives and our society.

Cell phones have many benefits as well, such as saving lives, answering questions we

have throughout the day, and even saving the day with a quick and easy dinner recipe. Most

smartphones today have the emergency button located on the home screen, so in case of

emergency, alerting immediate assistance is within a few clicks. Similarly, cell phones can assist

us with random facts throughout the day that can give us new information, helping us socialize if
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we have the strength to detach ourselves from the screen. Lastly, they have the potential to alert

citizens in any dangerous lurking. Amber Alerts are an example of this, notifying almost

everyone within a specific area of a variety of dangers or things to be aware of, such as a stolen

car or a missing person. Cell phones have benefits, but too much of anything is a bad thing.

Social media and the internet are expanded by cell phones as it can be the new beginning

or the end of communication. They can be controlling and can reframe us into anti-social

zombies. However, it is possible for us to not be controlled by our cell phones. We must realize

that life is short and that we, as the next generation, cannot waste all our time on social media.

Thus, finding a balance between cell phones and our daily lives will allow us to be lively and in

control. With more minimal use of cell phones, we can find the time to be social. Social media

does have positive effects in terms of communication, like emergency alerts and news update.

On the other hand, they have also provided a negative impact on our social skills in public. It is

self-evident that the internet and social media are the monster of today's society, and cell phones

are what connects us to it. Therefore, it is necessary for each of us to understand and influence

others to properly use cellphones in a responsible matter.

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Works Cited

Losh, Elizabeth M., et al. Understanding Rhetoric: a Graphic Guide to Writing. 2nd ed.,

Bedford/St. Martin's, 2017.

Klosterman, Chuck. My Zombie, Myself: Why Modern Life Feels Rather Undead. Monsters:

A Bedford Spotlight Reader, created by Andrew J. Hoffman, 1st ed.,Bedford St. Martins,

2015. pp. 40-45.

Suliveres, Marcos. Social Media: The Death of Real World Interaction? The Insight Brief:

Think above and Beyond, 5 Jun 2014. medium.com/musings-of-a-writer/social-media-the-

death-of-real-world-interaction-5e2f33cfd8ee