The Dark Side of the Social Networks

In Super Sad True Love Story, the influence of social media and how its usage comes to define our society is a prominent theme in the book. With the commonplace usage of the äppärät, which serves as a futuristic do-it-all iPhone, the society created by Shteyngart has become dependent on the device as a substitute for social interactions between two people.

Lenny decides to have a reunion at a bar with his friends following his trip to Italy. While there, one of Lenny’s friends suggests that they should “FAC,” or Form A Community. He explains to Lenny that this is “…a way to judge people. And let them judge you” (88). The äppärät then returns results that judge your compatibility with whoever you are FACing (which is a play on the homophonic explicative). This new method of interacting removes the human interaction involved with socializing and forming relationships with others, much like Facebook and text messaging are starting to do in today’s society. The book goes further with this idea, with one of Lenny’s coworkers adding Lenny to his list of “101 People We Need to Feel Sorry For.” Worried about the social repercussions he could have with Eunice, Lenny approaches him, saying, “‘Hey, guy. Look, I appreciate the attention, but I got this new girlfriend with 780 F***ability and I’m kind of, like trying to play it real coolio with her. So would you mind taking me off your stream?’” (120). Shteyngart smartly highlights our society’s obsession over how comments passed around social networks can make or break our social standings, whether they be true or not.

Continuing with this new method of evaluating individuals based on computer-analyzed profiles, the ratings provided by the äppärät prove to be a significant basis on whether it is valuable to socialize with another person. This rating system is also heavily centralized on sexual relations between two people, with the main rankings consisting of “Hotness” and “F***ability.” As Noah, one Lenny’s friends, points out, “‘Your äppärät runs [her profile] against the stuff you’ve downloaded about yourself and then it comes up with a [F***ability] score” (90). Shtyngart takes the emphasis of sex appeal today’s world and increases it two-fold, showing us the current path our society is headed to if this how we continue to conduct ourselves on social networks.