SPOILERS
After reading Divergent by Veronica Roth about a year ago, I finally have my hands on the next book, Insurgent. This series takes place in a future Chicago where society is divided into five factions: Abnegation, Amity, Candor, Dauntless, and Erudite. Something I've noticed about these books is the huge impact that secrets have on the characters and story. This is true in most books, but it's especially prominent in Insurgent. The book's tagline is "One choice can destroy you," and so can secrets. I connected the way people have secrets in Insurgent to the way they have them in real life.
Many people keep secrets for their safety or that of someone else. The main character, Tris, and her boyfriend are Divergent - they are suited for more than one of their society's five factions. The Divergent are immune to mind-controlling serums, usually called simulations. Anybody who is Divergent must keep it a secret. The Erudite (the intelligent faction) will kill any Divergent they find, likely to prevent there from being uncontrollable citizens. The Divergent were eventually revealed by a sleeping gas that did not affect them, and that made them far more vulnerable. In real life, most secrets aren't life-or-death scenarios, but it does show that some secrets should be kept... And that all secrets come to light eventually.
Of course, some people also keep secrets for their own purposes. Tris' boyfriend, Four's father beat him when he was young, and he kept it a secret out of fear, and to try to save his dignity. Tris killed her friend Will when he was under a mind-control serum, and kept it secret until a lie-detector test forced her to reveal it. When she's asked what she regrets, she responds: "I regret... [shooting] Will, while he was under the simulation." These secrets are a little more like the ones people have today (although most people haven't shot their mind-controlled friend). The motivations behind these secrets are much more similar to secrets we have - to save friendships, to keep one's dignity, out of fear, or out of guilt.
Despite the fact that secrets cause so many problems, it's difficult not to have them. The Candor are the truthful faction, and they do not allow secrets. When you become part of the Candor, you have to be asked personal questions under truth serum. Because they are truthful all the time, other factions see Candor as abrasive and mean. Similarly, the Abnegation are the selfless faction, and they believe that keeping secrets is selfish. They are called 'Stiffs' and are made fun of for being the strictest faction. These groups recognize the danger and potential harm of keeping secrets but they're looked down upon for it.
The way people keep secrets in Insurgent, which is not at all a realistic book, is mostly the same as the way people keep secrets in real life. Characters that have secrets inevitably have them revealed, and characters that try not to have secrets are ridiculed. There's no middle ground.
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Monday, January 20, 2014
Drive-Through Generosity
A recent article in Upfront Magazine called "Drive-Through Generosity" discusses the trend of what is called "paying it forward." This means repaying a kindness to someone other than the person who paid you a kindness. According to the article, people have been paying it forward by paying for the food of the people behind them at drive-throughs. It is common in the US and Canada - in fact, in 2012, 228 consecutive customers paid it forward at a Tim Hortons in Canada. Some people think that the trend is due to increasingly negative and gloomy news, both in the US and around the world.
The author wants me to think that this is a good thing. Paying it forward is a much-needed act of kindness in a world that can be gloomy and depressing. With everything I hear on the news every morning - murder, pollution, greed - it is nice to hear about something as small as buying a stranger a hamburger. The author uses a quote from a woman who pays it forward frequently. She says that the trend is about "letting people see... there are nice people out there and maybe we can turn it around." The author is biased in that they believe that paying it forward is a good thing for society. Of course, the opposite view - paying it forward has a negative effect on society - seems more than a little ridiculous to me.
Before I read this article, I did not know that paying it forward existed, let alone that it was a trend. I think that paying it forward is a great thing to do. This article is similar to other stories I hear about random acts of kindness to strangers. After reading this article, I have realized that I want to be the kind of person who pays it forward whenever I can.
Works Cited
"Drive-Through Generosity." Upfront Magazine 13 Jan. 2014: 3. Web.
The author wants me to think that this is a good thing. Paying it forward is a much-needed act of kindness in a world that can be gloomy and depressing. With everything I hear on the news every morning - murder, pollution, greed - it is nice to hear about something as small as buying a stranger a hamburger. The author uses a quote from a woman who pays it forward frequently. She says that the trend is about "letting people see... there are nice people out there and maybe we can turn it around." The author is biased in that they believe that paying it forward is a good thing for society. Of course, the opposite view - paying it forward has a negative effect on society - seems more than a little ridiculous to me.
Before I read this article, I did not know that paying it forward existed, let alone that it was a trend. I think that paying it forward is a great thing to do. This article is similar to other stories I hear about random acts of kindness to strangers. After reading this article, I have realized that I want to be the kind of person who pays it forward whenever I can.
Works Cited
"Drive-Through Generosity." Upfront Magazine 13 Jan. 2014: 3. Web.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Power in The Circle- revised
The Circle by Dave Eggers is a scary book. Well, maybe not
scary, but ominous. In the near future, a young woman named Mae gets a
job at a large Internet company called the Circle. The job comes with
amazing perks, like dorms for people who work late and a fully stocked
and operational health clinic. As Mae rises through the ranks of the
Circle and becomes distant from life outside of it, it is clear to the
reader that the Circle has power in the text.
The Circle's goal is transparency. It started off as a network meant to combine all of your online profiles into one account - your 'TruYou' account. Because you had to use your real name and information, it eliminated Internet anonymity. Over time, the Circle evolved into a larger technology company, interested in safety and clarity not just online but everywhere. When Mae first enters the Circle, she meets a man who is working on a tracking device to be implanted into small children with the intent of eliminating kidnappings. However, not all of the Circle's endeavors are as noble. There are slogans plastered all over the campus, and later in the book Mae helps to create a few: "privacy is theft" and "secrets are lies." These slogans sound odd and brainwashy to you and me, but Mae smiles when she delivers them at a press conference.
In the book, the Circle has power. Its power is mainly shown over the main character, Mae Holland. When she begins work at the Circle, she is simply happy to be working at a place that is changing the world, rather than a boring desk job at the utility building in her hometown. She soon discovers that being a part of the Circle is a 24-hour job. She is expected to answer survey questions, be active on Zing (some form of social network, most like Twitter), and be a part of several on-campus groups. She is pulled into Human Resources for not being active on Zing over a weekend. She tells Josiah, the HR worker, that she took a kayaking trip,and he's furious with her because "I'm looking at your profile, I'm finding nothing about you and kayaking. No smiles, no ratings, no posts, nothing." When a minor crime Mae has committed comes to light, she is forced to become "transparent" - she wears a camera around her neck, and anyone who wants to can see what she's doing. Transparency is meant to ensure that nothing shady is going on where no one can see it, and many politicians became transparent as soon as they could. After all, secrets are lies.
Mae never sees why any of this is wrong. She allows herself to be brainwashed. The Circle's power over her is clear and absolute. Mae's parents and her ex-boyfriend Mercer see the Circle and its goals as wrong and nosy, but the Circle still holds power over them. Mae's father has multiple sclerosis, and was covered by Mae's fancy health insurance plan as long as he and her mother installed cameras around their home, a slightly less invasive version of transparency. However, they quickly become uncomfortable with the cameras, first covering them up and then leaving, refusing to speak to Mae around cameras and through social media. The Circle forces them out of their home, but they still depend on it to pay for Mae's father's medicine. They disapprove of the Circle, but it still controls parts of their lives.
Then, there is Mae's ex-boyfriend Mercer. Mercer is against social media in general. Soon after Mae starts working at the Circle, she and Mercer get into a big fight about social media. Mercer claims that Mae is willingly giving herself and her personality to the Circle (which she is). Mercer also cuts off contact with Mae, and attempts to go underground, away from the Circle. Towards the end of the book, Mae helps to test out a new Circle service that makes it possible to find anyone in the world using the power of Circle users all over the globe. She asks for Mercer Medeiros. People all around the world begin to search for Mercer, and he is located in the woods in Oregon. He tries to drive away, but he's chased by drones with cameras and audio feeds onto a bridge. Chased by voices saying things like "Mercer, submit to us! Submit to our will! Be our friend!" Mercer drives his truck off of the bridge to avoid being caught. The Circle - or rather, the people of the Circle, caused him to kill himself.
The Circle is in complete power in this text, and not many seem to know that. Not even one of the heads of the Circle understands how completely it has taken over the world. Social media isn't quite at this level yet - the most Twitter can do right now is decide what TV shows get canceled. However, I think that if we're not careful, something like the Circle could easily exist in the future, and knowing me, I'd be Mae.
The Circle's goal is transparency. It started off as a network meant to combine all of your online profiles into one account - your 'TruYou' account. Because you had to use your real name and information, it eliminated Internet anonymity. Over time, the Circle evolved into a larger technology company, interested in safety and clarity not just online but everywhere. When Mae first enters the Circle, she meets a man who is working on a tracking device to be implanted into small children with the intent of eliminating kidnappings. However, not all of the Circle's endeavors are as noble. There are slogans plastered all over the campus, and later in the book Mae helps to create a few: "privacy is theft" and "secrets are lies." These slogans sound odd and brainwashy to you and me, but Mae smiles when she delivers them at a press conference.
In the book, the Circle has power. Its power is mainly shown over the main character, Mae Holland. When she begins work at the Circle, she is simply happy to be working at a place that is changing the world, rather than a boring desk job at the utility building in her hometown. She soon discovers that being a part of the Circle is a 24-hour job. She is expected to answer survey questions, be active on Zing (some form of social network, most like Twitter), and be a part of several on-campus groups. She is pulled into Human Resources for not being active on Zing over a weekend. She tells Josiah, the HR worker, that she took a kayaking trip,and he's furious with her because "I'm looking at your profile, I'm finding nothing about you and kayaking. No smiles, no ratings, no posts, nothing." When a minor crime Mae has committed comes to light, she is forced to become "transparent" - she wears a camera around her neck, and anyone who wants to can see what she's doing. Transparency is meant to ensure that nothing shady is going on where no one can see it, and many politicians became transparent as soon as they could. After all, secrets are lies.
Mae never sees why any of this is wrong. She allows herself to be brainwashed. The Circle's power over her is clear and absolute. Mae's parents and her ex-boyfriend Mercer see the Circle and its goals as wrong and nosy, but the Circle still holds power over them. Mae's father has multiple sclerosis, and was covered by Mae's fancy health insurance plan as long as he and her mother installed cameras around their home, a slightly less invasive version of transparency. However, they quickly become uncomfortable with the cameras, first covering them up and then leaving, refusing to speak to Mae around cameras and through social media. The Circle forces them out of their home, but they still depend on it to pay for Mae's father's medicine. They disapprove of the Circle, but it still controls parts of their lives.
Then, there is Mae's ex-boyfriend Mercer. Mercer is against social media in general. Soon after Mae starts working at the Circle, she and Mercer get into a big fight about social media. Mercer claims that Mae is willingly giving herself and her personality to the Circle (which she is). Mercer also cuts off contact with Mae, and attempts to go underground, away from the Circle. Towards the end of the book, Mae helps to test out a new Circle service that makes it possible to find anyone in the world using the power of Circle users all over the globe. She asks for Mercer Medeiros. People all around the world begin to search for Mercer, and he is located in the woods in Oregon. He tries to drive away, but he's chased by drones with cameras and audio feeds onto a bridge. Chased by voices saying things like "Mercer, submit to us! Submit to our will! Be our friend!" Mercer drives his truck off of the bridge to avoid being caught. The Circle - or rather, the people of the Circle, caused him to kill himself.
The Circle is in complete power in this text, and not many seem to know that. Not even one of the heads of the Circle understands how completely it has taken over the world. Social media isn't quite at this level yet - the most Twitter can do right now is decide what TV shows get canceled. However, I think that if we're not careful, something like the Circle could easily exist in the future, and knowing me, I'd be Mae.
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