Farhad Manjoo Describes All the Positive Reasons

¶ … Farhad Manjoo describes all the positive reasons for having a profile on the social network, Facebook. Manjoo's argument is that Facebook, despite any potential deficits is a valuable tool and uses his essay to convince those not already using Facebook that the website will be good for them. He utilizes all the persuasive literary devices (logos, ethos, and pathos) to convince the reader that the potential negatives about Facebook are far outnumbered by the potential benefits.

Logos, by definition, is the word choices an author makes in order to help prove his or her point. Manjoo makes subtle jabs at those not on Facebook. He does so partially by making this group know that they are fast becoming the minority. Secondly, he compares these standouts with false stories quoted in the satirical and fictional newspaper, The Onion. "I'm not an elitist. It's just that I'd rather sculpt or write in my journal or read Proust than sit there passively staring at some phosphorescent screen." Obviously, someone who sculpts and reads Marcel Proust for fun, not to mention someone who describes a computer screen as phosphorescent, is most assuredly an elitist. The purpose of this type of writing is to ensure that those reading the essay, who do not wish to think of themselves as elitist or above the group, will then log on to Facebook.

Ethos is the ability, through writing, to portray honesty and authority. He begins the paper with statistical information and quotes from Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg. For example, Manjoo has defined how many people are logged on to Facebook. "It was just last August that Facebook hit 100 million users. Since then, an average of 374,000 people have signed up every day." This information is used to not only inform the reader, but also to subtly intimidate the reader. Then, Manjoo dramatically changes the tone of voice he uses in writing. Manjoo makes the point that any new information or new technology is always met with a feeling of nervousness and terror. However, time will ease this fear. Everyone becomes accustomed to new technologies as time passes. "As more people got phones, they became more useful for everyone -- and then one day enough people had cell phones that everyone began to assume that you did, too… From that moment on, it became an affectation not to carry a mobile phone; they'd grown so deeply entwined with modern life that the only reason to be without one was to make a statement by abstaining." After putting on his metaphorical knowledge hat, he instead takes a tone of friendship, even going so far as to ask his readership for permission to call them his friends. Finally, Manjoo systematically removes all the potential arguments a person would have for staying away from Facebook. Among these is a woman named Kate Koppelman who was afraid that if she signed up for Facebook then everyone would know her business, sometimes even before she knew it herself. Manjoo addresses this by informing Koppelman, and the rest of the readership, that Facebook has many privacy and safety features to ensure that no one can read postings or updates without the direct permission of the owner of that profile. His most potent argument is in quoting a fashion photographer named Darcy Stockton. This woman refused to have a Facebook page because "If you have time to network through a site like that, you aren't working enough. I just don't have the time or the ability to keep up with yet another social networking site in my free time. I feel there's other things and real experiences I could be having in real life instead of wasting my free time on Facebook." This quotation is counterpointed in the next paragraph when it is revealed that Stockton is now a member of Facebook with 250 Facebook friends. Manjoo uses this to show that even the staunchest of opposition to Facebook are going to change their minds.