6: In Search of the Leviathan (The Quest to Discovery)

Hunting the Leviathan:

The standard online convention which I chose to explore was Facebook, and practices relating to
"Facebook etiquette". Upon first registering with Facebook, one is presented with a list of "Facebook rules", which many commonly fail to read. A common practice is to scroll down and click on the button that says "I agree". While failure to be well-versed in the "official" rules of Facebook is clearly not an issue, the inability to align oneself with the proper "Facebook etiquette" can mean anything from online isolation to "de-friending". Through research conducted on Facebook, I discovered a list of "rules" that Facebook users everywhere are expected to be well-versed in. Although different Facebook groups put their own spin on the rules, there were common themes, which I decided to list below. The rules include:

1) You must have a picture. This is not the Question-mark book.

2) This picture should actually look like you. Using a picture in which you appear significantly more attractive than you actually are creates confusion and disappointment.

3) Rule 3 applies to significant others. We're happy about your relationship, but save the cuddling for webshots.

4) Why are you smoking in your picture? It doesn't make you look cool (although drinking does).

5) Confirm all friend requests from your school, even if you have no idea who the person requesting your friendship is. Chances are you hooked up with them while you were drunk.

6) Don't write on your own wall, it makes you look like a loser, unless you do not feel like sending out messages to all those that wished you well on your birthday.

7) You obviously check Facebook every 5 minutes, so please respond to your messages in a timely manner. Chances are you're making the message-sender extremely insecure.

8) Just because there wasn't a question in a message someone sent you does not mean that you do not have to respond. As small talk is virtually eliminated through facebooking, every comment deserves a response.

9) If you are not on Facebook that does not mean that people will think you are cool or mysterious. It means no one is thinking about you at all.

10) Don’t use Facebook as a conversation icebreaker. (Get to know them first, otherwise you either sound like a stalker or a geek with too much free time biotch!)

It is my understanding that people come to know these outlined norms from their peers as well as through their own use of the site. Since its beginnings, the "rules" have changed, in light of the platform changes the site has occurred in the span of a year. However, as things are altered, practices get passed along from network to network and friend to friend. Reflecting on the friend to friend aspect, I recall a time when I took down my profile picture and left a question mark up for a day or so. Almost instantly, my wall was bombarded with comments like "where's your picture", "put a pic up ASAP", and my personal favorite "question marks are for ugly people..put a pic up now julia". Although I thoroughly enjoyed the uproar that ensued from my failure to comply with the norms of Facebook, I realized just how prevalent "Facebook etiquette" is. Not only do we act as monitors for our "friends", we also perpetuate the continuity of the practices.

In light of my findings, I concluded that due to the unmoderated setting characteristic of Facebook, "the Leviathan would emerge with more difficulty were it not for human willingness to conform and our eagerness to preserve a productive online group environment" (Wallace, 70). According to Wallace, generally members of cohesive online groups expect new members of the group to follow the "rules" that are in place in the environment. When this does not occur, some sort of consequence ensues. Bascially, what is at stake here is the desire to belong. It is this desire that encourages individuals to adhere to rules, whether unofficial or not. When you think about it, no one wants to be an outcast, especially not in an online setting, when one could arguably control the impression that they desire to portray. With respect to Facebook, anything from "reporting this person" to "de-friending" them can be seen as a social re-buff; one that many agree is undesirable. Extending her analysis, Wallace goes on to explain that the reason why the Leviathan may be increasing in influence is due to the fact that "our contributions to the net are not as fleeting, nor as difficult to trace, as many had supposed" (Wallace, 70). So that means those pictures one posts of that crazy spring break in Cancun, will remain with Facebook, despite the fact that one may abruptly delete it from their album.

In summary, in looking at the concept of "Facebook etiquette", I am not surprised by my aforementioned "scolding" for acting outside of the norm. When thinking about how Facebook has transcended from an online social network site to a cultural staple, it is easy to see how practices have become so inherent. To some degree, this "Facebook etiquette" is almost second nature. To the newbies, it is something that one quickly catches onto.