Can the Virtual World Disconnect Us from Reality?

In the virtual world of internet, Facebook is like a genie. The moment it has escaped from the bottle, it has taken a firm grip over the real world too. Even though it has not completely erased the boundaries between real and virtual worlds, it has definitely brought the two very near. Virtual is that which only appears to be real but is in fact, not.

Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook on 4th February 2004 while he was a student at Harvard University. Facebook has 1.32 billion subscribers worldwide, of which 100 million are Indians. CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg says — "Out of 24 hours in a day, our subscribers spend on an average about 40 minutes on Facebook."

It is an inner desire of all human beings to attract others, win others' appreciation, gain importance in society and earn others' attention. Such innate human desires can easily find their fulfillment on Facebook. Life on Facebook is virtual. We can imagine a person to be our friend, but such an imagined friend can never help us when we are in pain or suffering.

In this novel and modern world of Facebook, boundaries between real life and virtual existence have become blurred. A very recent incident is worth mentioning here. A lady from Dehradun made a friend on Facebook who wanted to build a shelter for elderly people. The lady used to sympathize with this cause and the so-called friend took advantage of her emotions. He convinced the lady to donate for the cause and she gave him a cheque for Rs 1 Crore. The friend turned out to be a fraud.

Facebook may have some advantages, but its disadvantages definitely outweigh them. Facebook causes a serious wastage of time. There is a disorganized fake web of 'likers' on Facebook. To 'like' every other thing on Facebook and gain a lot of 'likes' on our posts creates a strange mental state. If this mental state persists for a long time, it leads to a mental disorder called — attention seeking. This disorder, which has its genesis in Facebook, keeps driving us to do something which wins us appreciation of others, forcing us to act in any way that attracts others' attention even if superficial and insincere.

If Facebook is utilized to gain knowledge, to propagate good ideologies, and to further research, then it is worth it. But instead, if Facebook is used for crime and carrying out useless activities that waste time, then it takes us into such an imaginary, virtual world from where it becomes very difficult to return.