The Social Network: A Brief Analysis

The Social Network is revelatory in many different ways, probably the least of which was the frustration that all the supposed “founders” felt. In the past when an idea was created we usually give credit to one man or one group. I think we fail to realize the scope of knowledge that can influence others; what is important is that one gets recognition first. Einstein’s theory of Relativity was also created by another scientist at the same time, but since Einstein worked at a patent office he had the chance to get there first.

The Social Network shows a part of our culture that changed the way we communicate. But it also is an interesting commentary on Auteur Theory; throughout the movie there were snippets of the multiple depositions Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) had to go to because he retained that Facebook was all his idea. Granted, he was the genius and creator behind the website. The Winklevoss twins did spur his creative process though, as well as his best friend Eduardo putting in the money (which technically was not even his but his father’s) to begin the website. All this leads to a question: Are ideas or money more important in today’s world?

Another one of the ways that this movie is unique is that in past disputes that changed the social structure of society never happened so fast, much less without any war or violence. If the creation of Facebook involved people from more than just one country who knows what could have happened? Other than that, Facebook spread over the internet literally like a virus. I had a Facebook by the beginning of my senior year of high school after getting an invite from a friend, which was in the end of 2005; about two years after the actual idea was conceived. What happened in those two years seemed to be happening so fast because of the acceptance of the idea itself. In the past the people who had certain ideas had to fight, go into exile and even die to prove their efficacy. Then there was the tasks of letting everyone else in the world know these genius’s/prophet’s/what-have-you’s deeds and ideas. But in today’s world of grand technological communication and more educated population, the good ideas seem to be accepted more easily. Those who stood in the way of the idea of “Facebook” can be likened to the Winklevoss brothers. Eduardo’s depositions with Mark (in the movie) only showed more depth to the story itself and how Mark had made himself more recognized for the idea. In this way Mark Zuckerberg can be seen as an “asshole” the way the film portrays him as.

The Movie itself is fun to watch, while the storyline is frequently interrupted by rooms of lawyers holding depositions of the main people trying to sue Mark Zuckerberg. These can be seen as modern day battle grounds. The more I think about it, the more the idea of Facebook stems all from a girl; the girl that breaks up with Mark in the very beginning of the movie. I do like the socks with sandals though; I wear the same thing often.

Response to #3

In the past, there were many of the same modes of social interaction that we have today. We can communicate with phones and have been for a over a century. The advent of industry brought us faster and faster ways to travel and interact with different people. And the internet has given us instant communicative abilities, much less instant gratification for whatever we want. In today’s world, technology rules over us in a way because mostly everything we do, every social interaction that takes place is thanks to the technology of our time.

The spread of technology can have both positive and negative effects for all of us, but for me it has not changed much of my social interaction. The kind of technology that affects me most is probably the use of my cell phone and the internet. It is positive in the way that family and friends that live far away can connect with me, and I with them. This is done with Facebook, Skype, email and the many apps of the Iphone. There is another positive thing about all this technology. It can keep me occupied with information and entertainment for as long as I want; there is no time limit to one’s use. There are negative effects of this technology though. It can be a huge distraction at times, as well as give us the ease to send things and say things that maybe we should think more about. Our face to face interactions are needed if we are to get past the ease of the internet.

Generally, people have the same type of problems. They can be way more extreme than my thoughts on technology and social interaction, but for most part it is them same. People can almost live their lives on the internet, as the ease and choice among the internet is so vast.

The internet is great tool though. We can not only communicate with people we know, but meet people we don’t. The only thing it does not provide is the sense of another person or group being there with you; it is a weak tie. From dating sites to forums, there can be many kinds of relationships over the internet. My older brother actually met his wife on a dating site, and I don’t think that show To Catch a Predator would exist without the internet. We can become comrades with people over an internet game and get a quick laugh or piece of advice from the vast amount of forums out there.

We cannot forget the value of face to face relationships though. The internet has only begun its time here on earth compared to us, but one can see the rapid expansion and seemingly infinite variety becoming more than a tool. The fact that so many people use the internet and soon more will is scary. We cannot live our lives with only weak-tie relationships. But thanks to the ever increasing technology we use and create, it is possible to see that soon the internet itself will transform into a more real public sphere. We just cannot forget our personal responsibility in all the commotion.