The unavoidable truth

I posed this question in an earlier post, asking whether Egger's thought technology or people were the problem and I have come to the conclusion that it is without a doubt people's own fault that privacy has completely diminished in our society and people have become more surface level and completely lost any sense individuality or strong character. Yes, technology does allow for this to happen but it is not forced upon us. We invite the high tech gadgets into every aspect of our lives. In Egger’s book Mae describes the feeling of posting for thousands of followers to see as a “buzz” like an adrenaline rush. Today, often one’s popularity is discerned from the number of ‘followers’ one has on twitter or instagram. People are constantly tweeting and posting pictures. A tweet can be about anything from your current mood to how many times you went to the bathroom that day. Kids tweet about big fights with their parents or siblings. Will even curse out their teachers for sometimes thousands to read. Privacy is thrown out the window. People invite this invasion and cannot get enough of it. True alone time is almost unheard of. No matter where you are, one can always be in touch with thousands of people through their smart phones and networking sights seeing what people are up to and interacting with them. 

I have to admit that I am no doubt a part of the problem. I bought and read The Circle on my ipad. Right now, I am lying in bed typing this post on my laptop. This, is an internet BLOG for everyone to see. My phone has buzzed exactly four times in the last minute. I check my phone constantly. I tweeted about dreading doing this project. I will probably log in to Facebook before I finish. 

There is no way to avoid this truth that Egger’s pointed out with his cautionary fable. 

WE ARE THE PROBLEM. 

Some passages that got me thinking...

In this passage, Gina, an IT type employee of The Circle, accosts Mae for calling posting and participating in the company’s social media sites as ‘extracurricular’. 

"If you visit a coworker's page and write something on the wall, that's a positive thing. That’s an act of community. An act of reaching out. And of course I don’t have to tell you that this company exitsts because of the social media you consider ‘extracurricular’ .... But Gina hit a groove and would not stop until she’d finished her thought. ‘You realize that community and communication come from the same root word, communis, Latin for common, public, shared by all or many’” pg. 95

This brief argument got me thinking about whether interactions on social medias are actually important to society. Gina seems to think that these interactions are vital to communication and community as a whole. In the book’s world which is supposed to be a not so distant future of today’s society people have lost the ability to have deep social interactions and only communicate on a very superficial level through zings, camera feeds, pictures, and posts. I definitely see that trend occurring today. Fewer people everyday are willing to pick up the phone and actually call someone, rather they send a brief text or email. Writing someone a letter has also become somewhat obsolete in the age of emails. Even though, there is something personal and sweet about writing someone a handwritten note. People are becoming awkward in face to face conversation and hide their social ineptitudes behind monitors and cell phones. 

In this passage Mae gets in an arguement over her new job with Mercer, her ex-boyfriend. Mercer goes on several rants like this throughout the book and his character seems to represent the people against mass social medias in today's society.

"Here's the thing, and it's painful to say this to you. But you're not very interesting anymore. You sit at a desk twelve hours a day and you have nothing to show for it except some numbers that won't exist or be remembered in a week. You're leaving no evidence that you lived. There's no proof" pg. 260

This passage questions working a desk job in which you toil away in front of a computer screen all day and have nothing to show for it at the end of the day. Mercer, a man who works as a craftsman of chandeliers from deer antlers had something palpable to show for his work at the end of the day. While Mae, has nothing but numbers. Is life behind a computer screen a boring one? I would say yes. Is it worth doing for a good pay check? That I am not so sure about and it makes almost ashamed of myself but money is definitely a driving factor for people as it is for me.  

Dan, Mae's superior at work scolds her for not participating in The Circle's social medias. 

"It was great, wasn't it? And it was great to see you there. But we have no record of you being there. No photos, no zings, no reviews, notices, bumps. Why not?" pg. 175

This passage stuck out to me because it brought to mind a personal pet peeve of mine. Often, in today’s society, a person’s first reaction to an amazing meal, breathtaking sight, or famous piece of art work is to whip out their phones and take a picture of it to share with their friends online. Do we even appreciate things for ourselves? Or do we just seek out these amazing things in our world just to show others that we’ve been to that certain vacation spot or the new hot restaurant in town. I am really not sure. I poke fun at some of my more social media addicted friends saying, “if you don’t tweet about the party, did you really go?” or “if you don’t post a picture of that meal, did you really eat it” Obviously the answers to these rhetorical questions are yes. However, Dan in the above questions is mad that she didn’t share these experiences because in this society privacy is selfish and stealing from the public.

Religion/Morals?

I want to bring up the idea of religion and beliefs of both the characters and the business of The Circle itself. I first think of Kalden when this idea comes up due to his mysterious and "sketchy" behavior and word choice. I think that both the business as a whole and the employees who work there dont seem to have any religious beliefs at all. This puzzled me slightly because of the similarities between Inferno (a prominently religious story) and The Circle. Granted there are similarities with hell in both stories but there was a huge lack of self reflection in the characters on The Circle. The three beasts in Dantes Inferno resembled three characteristics of Dante that brought him to hell. I didn't see these beasts or reasons why Mae was there, however while she was in The Circle her actions were in no way reflective of any type of religion. For example, sleeping with Kalden seems to be a bit corrupt for a workplace. This intrigued be because the actions of the employees reflect the business as a whole. The Circle is very clearly depicted as unprofessional as well as manipulative and just plain wrong. Sex in the workplace, video taping employees in the bathroom and manipulating their lives are all examples of the lack of religion and morals in The Circle. At the same time, this was impressive to me how Dave Eggers was able to make so many connections to two texts while leaving out a critical part of Dantes Inferno.

Any thoughts?

My opinion

I wanted to include my personal opinion on the book to the blog because i feel that it is important to give my recommendation. I would like to start by saying that i did not have high hopes for this book when i first saw it; especially after finding out that it was about a girl in her twenties looking for a new job. This did not seem very exciting to me. But once i started reading The Circle, it was like a snowball effect with more and more adding to the effect of the book. It was curveball after curveball for me, even in the first scene when Mae was tricked into thinking she would be working in the same kind of place she left, a grey cubicle. This idea of changing aspects of the book was sprinkled in throughout in the most interesting and entertaining way. Noticing the totalitarian system The Circle was using to run their business enhanced my reading of the book immensely. Whether it be related to Mae and Annie's competitive edge getting the best of their friendship or Kalden and Mae with their rendezvous midway through, The Circle was an absolute totalitarian nightmare. Dave Eggers did an excellent job connecting this book to both the past and the current day. There are similarities to both Dantes Inferno and todays world with Google, i was pleasantly surprised with this book.

Conclusion

                                                                       Michaela Salamone (Post #5)
To be honest, when I first picked up this book I was actually quite hesitant to jump right into it. It looked pretty long and boring, like a book my mother would be interested in. I had heard of Dave Eggers before, but I had never gotten the chance to read any of his books. To my surprise, I really enjoyed The Circle. It gave me a completely different perspective on technology all together. It was interesting to see the astronomical effects technology had made on Mae's life, along with the other Circlers. Even though the events The Circle's technology caused was in my opinion, very far-fetched, it still conveyed that present-day issue we all notice today: Technology is taking over our lives.
People are becoming so consumed with their cell phones- with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more. Every day, more and more of peoples lives are being posted all over the internet for everyone to see. I wonder things like, Is anything private anymore?
I feel as though I know so much about other people-people I don't even know personally, just because of social media. We may not be getting filmed from a live camera tied around our necks, but we do post a lot of things to social media, which is out there for anyone to see. This novel really made me want to "unplug" myself from the internet, and to appreciate the freedom of privacy.

Other Connections

Similar to Michaela's idea of this book being unrealistic, I wanted to make some of my own connections between the book and the real world. This idea of The Circle made me think about the idea of Google. Today, Google is one of the most advanced companies in the world. Whether it be the technology they use or the ideas they come up with for citizens, The Circle has very similar characteristics. The Circle is described as euphoric and futuristic right down to the walls of the buildings. I researched the Google center of operation in California and immediately began to see the similarities. On the first page of The Circle, Mae describes it as, "heaven" with a "spotless blue sky" then she goes on to talk about the drive in movie theatre and its eloquence. After looking at images of Google, they seemed to be almost identical in their design. 

Also I noticed not only physical similarities, but similar operation as well. Google offers on campus living and free technology to use for work while on campus. This is similar to The Circle in that Mae uses a small camera around her neck to record her every move in The Circle. I happen to have a neighbor who worked for Google for several years; remembering what he told me, he made it seem like Google wanted to almost control their employees lives by offering so many "cool" things and benefits. He told me that living on the Google campus was nothing like the real world because it was to euphoric and perfect all the time. This is a lot like The Circle in that they want to control their employees by recording everything they do while they're there and make it very difficult to leave once you're in. My Neighbor said that when he quit Google, he no longer knew the people he worked with because they were so tied up in it, they couldn't understand why he was quitting and therefore didn't like him. This connects back to the idea i said earlier how Mae (by succeeding in The Circle) is only driving herself deeper into the layers of Hell. 

Who is Kalden?

I want to talk about the introduction of Kalden on Page 91. The whole passage is very awkward and above all else mysterious. He is portrayed in a very ambiguous way and from the description, it seems like he has no business being inside The Circle, although he does claim to work there. Mae is described as feeling unsettled and uncomfortable throughout the whole three page span of his presence. I was wondering what you guys thought of all of this.
Here are some interesting quotes from the passage I think you should take a look at:

"Standing in the hallway, under a tall narrow window, staring at his phone. Bathed in a blue-white light, he seemed to be waiting for instructions from his screen."

"His face was so open, his eyes liquid, gentle, unassuming, and he spoke so softly that any possibility of a threat seemed remote."

Kalden: "Well, I better head out, I'll just slip away."

Why did Eggers paint this scene with such mystery? What was he trying to convey through Kalden? Who do you think he is?

Why "The Circle"

Knowing that everything Dave Eggers puts in his book is there for a reason, I began analyzing every detail in his writing. I was looking for symbolism in every choice of words, names and descriptions. This brought me back to the title, "The Circle" and I realized that I hadn't analyzed the title as much as I could have. I did note the connection to Dante's Inferno and how The Circle could be referring to Dante's depiction of hell in one of my other posts, but thats as far as I went. I think its clear that the company is named this because it represents total connection, but I wanted to see if Eggers intended any connection to Mae with this title. I decided to do some research and see what symbolism and significance lies behind circles, and if this influenced Eggers in any way.

I found that circles in literature symbolize a unity within character. A moment where the character is able to make total sense of events and conflicts within their life. I think it is undisputed that this totally contrasts Mae. To where I have read, she is totally losing herself and can not make sense of anything. She is faced with several conflicts and is no where near resolving them. I also found that a circle often represents closer. This yet again contrasts Mae.

Overall, I think Dave Eggers chose this title to show that it is parallel with the ideas of the company, but not parallel to Mae. This contrasts Mae and the company and suggests that maybe Mae is not meant to be here. Even though she did amazingly at the company when she started, she may be slowly altering herself to conform to their ideas, rather than staying true to herself.

Totalitarian Nightmare

Later in the book, Kalden calls The Circle a "totalitarian nightmare". I had a sense of this throughout the book up until this point when he actually says it, but it makes complete sense. The Circle resembling the power of the totalitarian system, and Mae (and those like her) are those who are being manipulated by technology (the nightmare). The technology is almost entirely what makes Mae be successful in The Circle, but is also what is causing her to change so much as a person as well. Keep in mind also, that Annie was the one who got Mae into The Circle in the first place, and at the end of the book, Mae wants to triumph over her and push her out. At the beginning of the book, that is not the same Mae we knew by any means. Could this "totalitarian nightmare" be a general statement about The Circle and its influence on people through technology? Or could it be a power struggle between the old time friend (Annie) and the up and coming star of the company (Mae)?

What do you guys think of this idea?

Influence of Dante and Technology

In The Circle, Mae's entire life changes due to her new job. Instead of working in her old environment filled with people she didn't like and business strategies she hated, she now works for The Circle. The Circle, focuses its work on bringing out peoples lives through technology . On her first day, Mae earned a record score in her division of the company. After little time, Mae was a true circler, moving her way through and up the ranks of The Circle. As she moves up, she becomes a "transparent" by wearing a small camera around her neck recording her every move throughout the day. This is good for Mae because the more viewers she has the better she looks for the company. However with every advancement in The Circle, she begins to move deeper and deeper into Hell. Self exposure and technology were never things that Mae believed in, and now The Circle has changed her as a person. Now the question is, is there anything or any way Mae can stop her descent into hell?

Manipulation within The Circle

Manipulation is another one of those ever present ideas throughout the book. I found a scary example of how The Circle directly manipulates Mae on pages 272-276.

On these pages, Mae depicts an incident in which is stops by a kayak rental shop, of which she is a regular member, after hours and takes a kayak out for a ride. She went for a ride and then upon her arrival, was arrested for theft. Mae clearly didn't have intentions of stealing the kayak, and when the owner of the shop, Marion, arrived on the scene, he vouched for her and she was released. However, officials at The Circle found out about this incident and were very upset with her actions. Dan, who was interrogating Mae about what happened, ultimately manipulated her own views about herself and what she had done throughout their conversation.

Once they first begin talking, Mae believes that what she did was harmless and nothing more than a misunderstanding. "But there were no charges," she protested. "Marion cleared everything up." She continues to defend herself, and it is quite clear to the reader that Mae has done nothing wrong. Dan continues to say things to Mae, such as, "This is very serious stuff." and "It's pretty obvious you knew you were doing something wrong." After all of this and going through video footage of what she did, Maes view about the incident totally changed. "Mae's head echoed with self-denunciations. She hated who she was. How could she have done that, risked her job? Embarrassed her best friend? Jeopardized her father's health insurance? She was an Imbecile."

Reading this is almost scary. It makes the reader very aware of how powerful The Circle is and how they are able to manipulate all of their employees.

What do you guys think of this? What other parts of the book do you feel demonstrate this manipulation?

Realistic?

Michaela Salamone (Post # 4)
"SHARING IS CARING"

"SECRETS ARE LIES"
"PRIVACY IS THEFT"
To support these notions of The Circle, Mae is willing to broadcast her entire life through the internet by wearing a small camera around her neck. This camera records everything she sees, does, hears, and says. She is only allowed to mute the sound when she is going to the bathroom, but the viewers are even still able to see her view from the back of the stall door. She also only has a certain amount of time allowed for the sound to be muted, until her viewers begin to comment rapid-fire: "Are you okay???" In my opinion, this is all ridiculous. I know, that there is absolutely no way that I would ever let my job or boss force me to be "transparent." I don't think that anyone in their right mind would allow this either. Also, why would people all over the world want to sit at their computer all day to watch me perform daily activities, such as eating, working, and going to the bathroom? This all seems quite bizarre to me. I do believe, however, that technology is becoming more controlling of society, but I do not think that this is what our future has in store for us.

Koyaanisqatsi

While looking for interesting connections within the text, I remembered a a mention to the film Koyaanisqatsi. "As the elevator rose, the day's featured activities appeared on every elevator wall. There was a screening of Koyaanisqatsi at noon, a self massage demonstration at one, core strengthening at three..." I had never heard of this film so I decided to do some research to see if there was any reason why Eggers chose it in particular. What I found was not surprising. The film consists of stop motion and time lapse footage, and depicts the relationships between humans, nature and technology. This is all to fitting to the plot of The Circle, as it constantly highlights Mae's struggle with the ever presence of technology within the company. Upon finding this subtle connection, I will be on the lookout for more references throughout the book. You guys should keep note that every choice of reference Eggers makes in the book is probably intentional.

Influence of Orwell's 1984

The circle is no doubt brain washing Mae. I cannot help but see this book as a modern day 1984. 

Similarities: 

In both books privacy is forbidden and people are kept in check though constant surveillance. 

• In 1984 there is a strict social structure and in The Circle there are different circles within social media that separate the insiders and the outsiders although claiming this is not the intent; it is blatantly obvious that it does just that. 

• Mae and Winston are similar main characters and both lose their identity in the end to the panopticon. 

• The names for programs in The Circle like truspeak are clearly influenced from doubletalk and the lingo used in 1984

Differences:

• Winston tries to fight the panopticon while Mae from the beginning of the book loves the social connections and barely realizes her loss of self.

• Orwell seems to think that an omnipresent government is what threatens society while Eggers seems to claim we are actually the problem during this social media revolution.

•   In Egger’s novel the characters seem to be shallow and you only get to know them on a surface level. While reading, 1984 I found myself rooting for the doomed Winston and felt like I understood him. I think Egger’s characterized Mae as fairly shallow on purpose to portray the superficiality nature of people of todays online society. 

Connections to real life

Eggers is blatantly taking shots at social media as a whole. The all powerful mega company known as The Circle is almost like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google all combined into one massive company. Though, I read online that Eggers said he was not targeting any of these companies, the parallels are hard to miss. The location of The Circle is in Northern California with a vast sprawling campus that includes spas, recreational activities, a day care and more. Silicon Valley where the real life companies reside is also in Northern California where they too have vast sprawling, high tech, campuses. The founder of The circle, Ty Gospodinov, is described as a boy-wonder visionary who is a genius with limited social skills. Eggers wrote, "... the boy-wonder visionary, was wearing nondescript glasses and an enormous hoodie, staring leftward and smiling... People said he had borderline Asperger's, and the picture seemed intent on underscoring the point. With his dark unkept hair, his unline face, he looked no more than twenty- five." I kept picturing this kid as Mark Zuckerberg, and I think that is exactly how Egger's wanted it.

The "Zing's" or quick updates on what you are doing or where you are can be seen as tweets or facebook updates. The camera "lollipop" sized cameras marketed by The Circle as constant access to everywhere you want to be can easily be compared to Apple's facetime.                                             

Connections...

To where I have read so far, I have noticed connections to Dante's inferno, Heart of Darkness, and Existentialist ideas in general. The longer Mae is involved with this company, it becomes quite obvious that her ideas towards it change. (Much like Marlow's ideas changed about his company) Her initial view of the company, with its cozy dorms, amazing dining halls and beautiful aquariums, is that it is heavenly. But as the story progresses, the company seems to be more hellish. (Possibly why the book is titled "The Circle", referring to Dante's interpretation of hell) As she stays with the company longer, she is separated from her family and friends, and becomes isolated. The existentialist ideas I noticed are how Mae loses her sense of self and lets her career take over her life. I am excited to read more and see what events take place.

Mercer

Michaela Salamone (Post # 3)
I was wondering what you all thought about Mae's ex-boyfriend, Mercer. What does he represent in Mae's life? It is evident that Mae feels obligated to be civil with this man- the person she despises the most, only because he is still a huge part of Mae's parents' lives. He cares for her parents a lot, and Mae appreciates that- but whenever they interact at Mae's parents' house, the two of them butt heads. Mercer is a complete opposite of Mae- he owns a business that makes chandeliers out of deer antlers, while Mae is a rising star at the most technologically advanced company in the world. Mercer hates social media, and can barely operate his company's website. Mercer always criticizes Mae constantly about how wrapped up she is in her job. He hates the idea of "posts" and all this talk of "transparency."
Mercer quotes to Mae:

"Every time I see or hear from you, it’s through a filter. You send me links, you quote someone talking to me, you say you saw a picture of me on someone’s wall…It’s always a third-party assault.”

"You sit at a desk twelve hours a day and you have nothing to show for it except some numbers that won't exist or be remembered in a week. You're leaving no evidence you lived. There's no proof."

"I mean, all this stuff you're involved in, it's all gossip. It's people talking about each other behind their backs. That's the vast majority of this social media, all these reviews, all these comments. Your tools have elevated gossip, hearsay and conjecture to the level of valid, mainstream communication. And besides that, it's fucking dorky."

"It’s not that I’m not social. I’m social enough. But the tools you guys create actually manufacture unnaturally extreme social needs. No one needs the level of contact you’re purveying. It improves nothing. It’s not nourishing. It’s like snack food. You know how they engineer this food? They scientifically determine precisely how much salt and fat they need to include to keep you eating. You’re not hungry, you don’t need the food, it does nothing for you, but you keep eating these empty calories. This is what you’re pushing. Same thing. Endless empty calories, but the digital-social equivalent. And you calibrate it so it’s equally addictive."

Clearly, Mercer is against The Circle and everything it stands for. As the main antagonist in Mae's life, is he just a grouchy, old-fashioned person who is only against Mae to upset her? Or does he represent the truth? A voice of reason?

Attack on technology or on people?

Eggers writes the novel in a way that really forces us to ask this question; does his book target technology as the problem or people themselves? Is technology getting too advanced that privacy is becoming in possible to hold on to? Or is it people’s desire to constantly show off their lives that eliminates privacy. The employees of The Circle seem to think that if you are not doing anything wrong then privacy is not necessary. Also that to eliminate privacy will rid society of embarrassment. They do not see privacy as sacred or important in one’s life. So what it? Too much technology or are people the problem?

Descending through "Hell"

Michaela Salamone: Post #2
As I continue to read, I can't help but notice more and more parallels between this novel and Inferno. I do not believe that David Eggers wrote The Circle completely based off Dante's, but there are some obvious similarities between the two. Ironically enough, the first line of this novel is:
 "My God," Mae thought. "Its heaven."
 Little does Mae know, her new workplace is going to be her "Hell." Mae's best friend, Annie, who got Mae her position at The Circle is her guide throughout the entire novel (Virgil).  Each advancement she makes in her job, Mae is also advancing deeper into Hell.Throughout the book, Mae turns to Annie for guidance and advice along the way, since Annie happens to be a "big deal" at The Circle. The employees envy Mae for being so  close with Annie, and this is a major advantage for Mae in her job. She begins her first few weeks on the job at a computer- answering customers' questions, and receiving ratings for her answers (The first circle). At this time, Mae is not well-known at the company allowing her to blend in with everyone else. As she advances in the company, Mae is introduced to her "PartiRank." This is an online ranking which tracks every employees' participation in almost everything- from how many company parties attended, to how much the employees' are posting on social media (Second circle). As she continues to move up and succeed, Mae begins to lose her sense of identity. She finds herself losing touch with everyone around her and begins to focus her entire life on The Circle. Since The Circle emphasizes "transparency," Mae is eventually forced to wear a video camera around her neck to show the entire world what she is doing throughout every day. Mae now has to watch herself in every step, every action, and especially the things she says, since the whole world can see what she is doing. As the book progresses, Mae seems to have less and less privacy and is becoming more brainwashed by The Circle. I am eager to see what happens as Mae descends further into "Hell" and to find out how this book ends.

The Circle By Dave Eggers

Michaela Salamone (Post #1)
The Circle is a story about a young, ambitious girl named Mae Holland who is hired to work for the company of her dreams in California called The Circle. The Circle is the most powerful, technologically advanced company known. Mae is astounded by how modern her new workplace is and couldn't be more thrilled and honored to be an employee at such a well-known company. This story is a view on Mae's journey to rise up in her career and prove her worth to the people around her by attending to the company's increasingly demanding expectations. As the novel goes on, we are able to watch how Mae's entire life is changing forever, right before her eyes.