The Novel The Life Changer by Khadija Abubakar Jalli tells about the influence of social media on young people in the context of a larger statement about the problems and transformations that young people face in modern Nigerian society. Although the novel is not about social media itself, it relies on the lives of university students to point out the possibility of behavior, values, and relations being controlled by the help of digital platforms.
The following are some of the major ways through which the novel deals with the effects of social media on young people:
1. Effect on Identity and Self-image
Most of the characters in the novel are shown as very preoccupied with their virtual appearance on the site. As an example, identity manipulation and even deception in relations occur through social media because some female characters construct a perfect image of themselves. This is a reality and a burden on the young people to appear in a particular manner so as to ensure social acceptance.
2. Internet crime and Internet fraud
One of the leading ones is the involvement of the character in online scams called Tola. The novel dwells on the abuse of social media and access to internet as the students desire to make a lot of money easily by engaging in the activities that are not honest and are based on internet crimes, called, in Nigeria, the Yahoo Yahoo (internet fraud), a major issue in the country. It is a warning on the moral and legal risks of cybercrime.
3. Risky Behavior and Peer Pressure
It is the peer pressure that is also promoted through social media, which is covered in the book. The youngsters are viewed as matching lifeways, fashionable ways, and even scholastic or love success. This even makes the characters carry out risky behavior in trying to emulate what they observe online, not knowing the repercussions.
4. Denial of privacy and destroyed reputation
In the Life Changer, the rumors or reputations of the characters are damaged because of what is posted online. This is in agreement with the fact that once something is online, there is a chance that it can be hard to stop its dispersal or to influence how it can affect the image or opportunity of a person.
5. Weakening of Old Values
The novel compares more conservative values of older generations (as embodied by the narrator, who is mother, Ummi) and the very liberal, usually irresponsible habits of youth in contemporary society. Social media has been depicted to be the contributing factor to this cultural gap in the sense that it creates exposure to the students of foreign lifestyles and values that do not conform to traditional norms.
The Novel The Life Changer by Khadija Abubakar Jalli tells about the influence of social media on young people in the context of a larger statement about the problems and transformations that young people face in modern Nigerian society. Although the novel is not about social media itself, it relies on the lives of university students to point out the possibility of behavior, values, and relations being controlled by the help of digital platforms.
The following are some of the major ways through which the novel deals with the effects of social media on young people:
1. Effect on Identity and Self-image
Most of the characters in the novel are shown as very preoccupied with their virtual appearance on the site. As an example, identity manipulation and even deception in relations occur through social media because some female characters construct a perfect image of themselves. This is a reality and a burden on the young people to appear in a particular manner so as to ensure social acceptance.
2. Internet crime and Internet fraud
One of the leading ones is the involvement of the character in online scams called Tola. The novel dwells on the abuse of social media and access to internet as the students desire to make a lot of money easily by engaging in the activities that are not honest and are based on internet crimes, called, in Nigeria, the Yahoo Yahoo (internet fraud), a major issue in the country. It is a warning on the moral and legal risks of cybercrime.
3. Risky Behavior and Peer Pressure
It is the peer pressure that is also promoted through social media, which is covered in the book. The youngsters are viewed as matching lifeways, fashionable ways, and even scholastic or love success. This even makes the characters carry out risky behavior in trying to emulate what they observe online, not knowing the repercussions.
4. Denial of privacy and destroyed reputation
In the Life Changer, the rumors or reputations of the characters are damaged because of what is posted online. This is in agreement with the fact that once something is online, there is a chance that it can be hard to stop its dispersal or to influence how it can affect the image or opportunity of a person.
5. Weakening of Old Values
The novel compares more conservative values of older generations (as embodied by the narrator, who is mother, Ummi) and the very liberal, usually irresponsible habits of youth in contemporary society. Social media has been depicted to be the contributing factor to this cultural gap in the sense that it creates exposure to the students of foreign lifestyles and values that do not conform to traditional norms.