Though I'm kind of glad that our Circle blogs are coming to an end, I do have to admit that I will miss crapping all over Mae. I picked the third prompt from our final Circle post assignment because I'm glad that a some at the Times agrees with me that Mae isn't the typical protagonist. The Times review actually says that, ultimately, “Mae, then, is not a victim but a dull villain.” I've already talked about how Mae is very dull, so we agree on that point, but I never actually thought of Mae as a villain or a victim. In this post, I'd like to talk about how Mae isn't a victim and also about how she's kind of a villain, but not truly a villain.
So, the first question is: is Mae a victim?
The answer is simple and obvious; no, she is not a victim. Though she is harmed (she loses her sense of humanity, her friends, her parents, her ex, and her only significant lover) she is the agent of her own undoing; she would be a victim if the Circle had taken her in and trapped her, if it had forced her to live there and ingrain herself in the texture of the company, if it had forced her hand on any of the terrible decisions she makes. However, she, of her own free will, makes all of the terrible decisions. Though the Circle may influence her decisions to some degree, she ultimately makes the final choices. Simply, she is not a victim.
So, if she isn't a victim, is she a villain?
Yes, but she's a pretty crappy villain. A villain is defined as someone or something that constitutes an important evil agency in the plot of a novel. Mae isn't even the true villain in The Circle. She is just the face of the true evil, which is the Circle itself.
Mae would be a true villain if she wasn't so damn ignorant. If she was conscious of the monopolization of almost everything by the Circle, and still continued to help the company further its goals, she might be an interesting character. There would be some opportunity to analyze why she would do such a thing; does she have an interesting backstory, a point in time event that drives her to such nihilistic ends?
But we can't ask these questions because she isn't interesting, she isn't aware of the Circle's ultimate goals, and she doesn't consciously decide to mess up the world. She just ends up doing it because she's a coward who's afraid of being insignificant, and the Circle allows her to be significant while also using her to further its own goals.
You might have noticed, as I did, that the end of The Circle is significantly different than the bulk of the text before it. So, what is the significance of Eggers' choice to depart from novelistic conventions in Book III of The Circle?
The abrupt ending signifies the speed with which the Circle closed. The contrast between the length of Book III and the length of previous sections of the book represents the stark difference between Mae prior to Book III and Mae throughout Book III. She has become totally brainwashed (she has the nerve to think Annie's lack of sharing, due to her comatose state, is selfish!). There is also a lot of Circle doctrine in Mae's account of what happens during Book III, showing her total immersion.
To conclude, I'm very excited about the movie version of The Circle to be released in 2017. I can't wait to see how they portray Mae; will they keep her as she is, a dull puppet of an essentially omnipotent supercompany? Or will Emma Watson unintentionally make Mae a likable character? Who knows? I'm looking forward to it, and I hope you are, too.
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Mae is the human equivalent of a wet piece of cardboard and she has more boyfriends in a year than i've had in my entire life
Astoundingly, Mae has three romantic partners throughout the course of The Circle. Mercer, before the book begins, Francis throughout, and Kalden later on. Personally, I find it hard to believe that three people could be interested in the human equivalent of a 2-hour-long infomercial, but that's how it is. Fortunately, Mae's love interests are a lot more interesting than she is. Each of Mae's love interests in The Circle are representative of her possible futures; Mercer represents a future for Mae in which she returns to a 'normal,' disconnected life; Francis represents a future of disappointment and full immersion at the Circle, and Kalden represents a future of which Mae has little knowledge, but that may be the best option for her.
Mercer represents everything that Mae is leaving behind at the Circle. He is the one that introduced her to kayaking and the bay, the one that helped her to conclude that kayaking "was criminally underappreciated sport, and the bay a body of water woefully underused." He was such a big part of her past, a part of her development of her appreciation for nature and for things better left unknown, that it is sensible to conclude that he would represent a possible future for Mae in which she returns to her family and leaves the omnipresent Circle behind her.
Of course, we know that Mae won't choose this future because of her hatred for Mercer and his "professorial smugness" and "antiquarian bullshit." As objective readers, we know that he is reasonable; his apprehensive feelings towards the Circle are entirely justifiable. But Mae, in her cloud of ignorance, ignores his warnings and shuts out the possible future that he offers. His death parallels Mae's decision to willfully deny the danger of the Circle; both make an intentional choice to remove the possibility of a certain future. Mae rejects a future with a return to normalcy, and Mercer rejects any future at all.
On the other hand, Francis symbolizes Mae's future at the Circle; he is boring, pitiful, and definitely not the best choice for her. His awkwardness is a nod to the effect of total immersion in social media culture; when someone decides to commit all of their interactions to an online platform, his or her ability to communicate with others in person deteriorates.
One of Francis' only laudable actions throughout the book is the creation of ChildTrack. Unfortunately, it seems, as ChildTrack becomes a reality, Francis begins to care more about what the fame from its invention can do for him than the virtue of the invention itself, essentially destroying any envy we would have had for him. This parallels the idea that the Circle's inventions are good, but there is always an ulterior motive that lessens the virtue of the invention. It's also important to note that Francis is beyond terrible in bed. Beyond. The sex scenes between Mae and Francis show how disappointing a future with Francis, and a future with The Circle, would be for Mae.
Even though Mae doesn't get any good sex with Francis, she definitely has a good time with Kalden. Her interactions with Kalden are symbolic of the power of mystery, the power of not knowing. The future that Kalden offers is mysterious and full of unknowns, and Mae doesn't like those. Kalden has a gravity about him; it is this attraction that indicates that he represents the best future for Mae. He is obviously intelligent, suggesting that choosing his future would be the smartest choice for Mae.
CONCLUSION WITHOUT SPOILERS:
Although it will ultimately be Mae's choice, we can deduce from all of this information which choice is the right choice, both for Mae and for humankind.
CONCLUSION WITH SPOILERS:
Of course, we all know Mae, and, no duh, she makes the wrong choice. Actually, not even the wrong choice; there are three choices, two of which are good or somewhat good, and this idiot goes and picks the only bad choice. Really, Mae? This is why I hate her, and you should, too. The end.
Mercer represents everything that Mae is leaving behind at the Circle. He is the one that introduced her to kayaking and the bay, the one that helped her to conclude that kayaking "was criminally underappreciated sport, and the bay a body of water woefully underused." He was such a big part of her past, a part of her development of her appreciation for nature and for things better left unknown, that it is sensible to conclude that he would represent a possible future for Mae in which she returns to her family and leaves the omnipresent Circle behind her.
Of course, we know that Mae won't choose this future because of her hatred for Mercer and his "professorial smugness" and "antiquarian bullshit." As objective readers, we know that he is reasonable; his apprehensive feelings towards the Circle are entirely justifiable. But Mae, in her cloud of ignorance, ignores his warnings and shuts out the possible future that he offers. His death parallels Mae's decision to willfully deny the danger of the Circle; both make an intentional choice to remove the possibility of a certain future. Mae rejects a future with a return to normalcy, and Mercer rejects any future at all.
On the other hand, Francis symbolizes Mae's future at the Circle; he is boring, pitiful, and definitely not the best choice for her. His awkwardness is a nod to the effect of total immersion in social media culture; when someone decides to commit all of their interactions to an online platform, his or her ability to communicate with others in person deteriorates.
One of Francis' only laudable actions throughout the book is the creation of ChildTrack. Unfortunately, it seems, as ChildTrack becomes a reality, Francis begins to care more about what the fame from its invention can do for him than the virtue of the invention itself, essentially destroying any envy we would have had for him. This parallels the idea that the Circle's inventions are good, but there is always an ulterior motive that lessens the virtue of the invention. It's also important to note that Francis is beyond terrible in bed. Beyond. The sex scenes between Mae and Francis show how disappointing a future with Francis, and a future with The Circle, would be for Mae.
Even though Mae doesn't get any good sex with Francis, she definitely has a good time with Kalden. Her interactions with Kalden are symbolic of the power of mystery, the power of not knowing. The future that Kalden offers is mysterious and full of unknowns, and Mae doesn't like those. Kalden has a gravity about him; it is this attraction that indicates that he represents the best future for Mae. He is obviously intelligent, suggesting that choosing his future would be the smartest choice for Mae.
CONCLUSION WITHOUT SPOILERS:
Although it will ultimately be Mae's choice, we can deduce from all of this information which choice is the right choice, both for Mae and for humankind.
CONCLUSION WITH SPOILERS:
Of course, we all know Mae, and, no duh, she makes the wrong choice. Actually, not even the wrong choice; there are three choices, two of which are good or somewhat good, and this idiot goes and picks the only bad choice. Really, Mae? This is why I hate her, and you should, too. The end.
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