![]() ![]() Most obvious is the comparison of Mae and Francis. FamilyĮggers demonstrates the importance of family by comparing the lives of the novel's characters with particular reference to their relationships with their parents and the impacts of their family on their development. The main danger of modernity, according to Eggers's novel, is individuals wanting and obtaining too much information about the world, others, and themselves, a motivation that underlies the modern push toward more (and more invasive) technology. Mae herself notes that because of constant surveillance she has learned "the ability to look, to the outside world, utterly serene and even cheerful, while, in her skull, all war chaos" (325). Mae chooses technology over faith in the well-intentioned doomsdayer Kalden/Ty which has him all but fired from the company he founded. A technology meant to help one connect with one's ancestors leads Annie to a nervous breakdown. Mae's demonstration of a technology supposedly harnessing social media's prevalence for public good drives her ex-boyfriend Mercer to suicide. ![]() The fates of many of the novel's important supporting characters demonstrate this theme. Eggers is not shy with the main theme behind his technological satire: modernization comes at a high price. ![]()
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