A Phenomenological analysis of Social Networking

awaiting publication, inter-disciplinary.net 2009

When someone says “I am online”, it is a phenomenological issue. In reflecting upon the later philosophy of Martin Heidegger, in particular focusing upon The Question Concerning Technology, social networking is a classic modern technology. The essence of the technology of social networking is Enframing, the essence of all modern technology for Heidegger; the essence of technology is nothing technological, but instead how the technology orientates humans towards the world. Social networking allows the users of the network to be placed in “standing-reserve”, and so the actual essence of social networking is no different to other technologies. The resources in social networking are people; and so the technology is creating the sense that people can be manipulated as resources, and put in standing-reserve. This is the main issue with social networking; the technology is designed to organise persons and their relationships with others, and as such the essence of technology, Enframing, affects human relationships in a way in which other modern technologies do not, simply because of the usage of the technology by humans.