Social Network
SAMPLE ESSAY
i) Have a look at the essay question below. What would be your answer to this question?
ii) Read the sample essay and the comments provided for key features of the essay .Do you think this is a good essay? Could it be improved in any way?
Question: Has social networking improved the quality of relationships in society? Write an essay of between 1800-2000 words, clearly stating your view on the issue.
Social networking has had a major influence on society in the 21st century, enabling citizens to engage with each other in radically new and different ways. According to Brown (2011), we can fall in love online, create friendships, attend parties in other countries – all without leaving the comfort (and anonymity) of our armchair. And while the Generation Ys and Xs in our society are leading the adoption of the emerging social networking websites, it has been noted that the older generations are now catching up, with the strongest recent growth in usage among the 55 and 65 age group (Burbary 2010). So what does this apparent ‘revolution’ mean for society? How is social networking changing the way people relate to each other, and can we say that it has led to an improvement in relationships? This essay will argue that in the area social and political awareness, social networking has had a strongly positive effect. In other areas of society however, there is cause for some concern.
Comment [T1]: This last sentence of the introduction presents the students’ ARGUMENT. We can think of the ARGUMENT as the students particular ANSWER to the question being posed. Your lecturers will be appreciative of any essay that has a clearly stated argument. Comment [T2]: This is an example of a SUB-HEADING. Subheadings help to show the structure of your essay. However, they should be used fairly sparingly in essay writing.
Background to social networking The idea of a ‘social network’ is not new. A social network in fact refers to any structure made up of
i) Have a look at the essay question below. What would be your answer to this question?
ii) Read the sample essay and the comments provided for key features of the essay .Do you think this is a good essay? Could it be improved in any way?
Question: Has social networking improved the quality of relationships in society? Write an essay of between 1800-2000 words, clearly stating your view on the issue.
Social networking has had a major influence on society in the 21st century, enabling citizens to engage with each other in radically new and different ways. According to Brown (2011), we can fall in love online, create friendships, attend parties in other countries – all without leaving the comfort (and anonymity) of our armchair. And while the Generation Ys and Xs in our society are leading the adoption of the emerging social networking websites, it has been noted that the older generations are now catching up, with the strongest recent growth in usage among the 55 and 65 age group (Burbary 2010). So what does this apparent ‘revolution’ mean for society? How is social networking changing the way people relate to each other, and can we say that it has led to an improvement in relationships? This essay will argue that in the area social and political awareness, social networking has had a strongly positive effect. In other areas of society however, there is cause for some concern.
Comment [T1]: This last sentence of the introduction presents the students’ ARGUMENT. We can think of the ARGUMENT as the students particular ANSWER to the question being posed. Your lecturers will be appreciative of any essay that has a clearly stated argument. Comment [T2]: This is an example of a SUB-HEADING. Subheadings help to show the structure of your essay. However, they should be used fairly sparingly in essay writing.
Background to social networking The idea of a ‘social network’ is not new. A social network in fact refers to any structure made up of
References: are listed in alphabetical order, and should provide all relevant details about the source you have used. You should check the format to be used in the library’s Harvard Style Guide. Note that you should only list those sources that have been CITED in the essay. This student has referred to a lot of sources. You may find that it is not necessary to use sources so abundantly in assignments you are set to do. Keep in mind though that evidence of wide reading is something that your lecturers will always appreciate in your work. 6 Huffington Post 2011 ‘Egypt 's Facebook Revolution: Wael Ghonim Thanks the Social Network’, viewed 29 August 2011, . Lenhart, A. & Madden M 2007, ‘Social Networking Websites and Teens: An Overview’ Pew Internet & American Life Project, viewed on 1 September 2011, Patchin, J 2008, Cyberbullying: ‘An Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to Offending and Victimization’. Deviant Behavior, 29 (2), pp. 129–156. Pempek, T, Yermolayeva, Y, & Calvert S 2009, ‘College students ' social networking experiences on Facebook’, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology 30: pp. 227–238 Preece, J & Maloney-Krichmar, D 2005, Online communities: Design, theory, and practice. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(4), article 1. Ridings, C & Gefen D 2004, ‘Virtual Community Attraction: Why People Hang Out Online’ Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10 (1). Rosen, C 2007, ‘Virtual Friendship and the New Narcissism’, The New Atlantis, Number 17, Summer 2007, pp. 15-31. Shirky, C 2008, Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations. Penguin Press, New York. Turkle, S 2011, Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. Basic Books, New York. Acknowledgement: Thanks to Steve Zan, a Swinburne student, who provided some of the material for this sample essay. ©Language and Learning Lab, FHEL, Swinburne 7