Facebook is "On Land" for most

In American Studies this week, we touched on the fact that when Huck Finn is on the raft, he is free to be himself with Jim, but when he steps onto land he feels the need to put on a mask and fit in with society, by pretending that Jim is his slave of some kind.  In the same way, I find that Facebook, and possibly the entire internet is not a place we can feel free to be ourselves.

On Facebook, I have never seen a post about an injury, emotional trauma, or relationship problems.  I see some posts that look like they were taken out of a melancholy book on relationships, saying things like, "I thought if someone breaks you, someone will come and fix it. But I was wrong. Sometimes, they come to break you more and make you feel the pain twice as before.." HERE is a link to Facebook so that you can check your own friends' posts (if you don't already have it open).  But that really doesn't tell any readers about what is happening in their life.  Most posts are completely superficial, dealing with homework, scheduling, and even the weather.  My own Facebook profile is equally boring, so it seems as if nobody is comfortable sharing what is actually going on in their lives.


The question is, is there a raft?  Is there somewhere where a person doesn't have a few billion people looking at their words or actions and where they don't have to worry about conformity?  If people put on a mask at school, on the internet, at clubs or sports, and maybe even for their parents, do they become that mask?  And is Facebook becoming what the creators intended it to be?  Is having 4000 friends and conversation completely devoid of meaning really the idea?