Her True Colors

Everyone has some bad in them but I like to think that the majority of people have a lot of good in them which in turn cancels out the bad. While reading The Circle I am honestly not so sure of that anymore. It is understandable in my opinion why The New York Times referred to Mae as a dull villain and not a victim. Mae has been put in the position to play the victim, the ignorant girl who is captivated by all of the power that the Circle seems to hold. In reality Mae has a dark side that she is not afraid to show, she betrays her friends and family, ends up aiding in a way to the death of one of her love interests and is unapologetic for all of her actions. Mae is a villain, whether she knows it or not, just though her simple but knowing acts of betrayal.

The betrayal of friends is hard to see, especially when it is a close friend who has done so much for the other person. While Annie has her faults as welt was surprising to see Mae climb to the top so quick;y without caring who she stepped on in the process. Annie got Mae the job, became almost like a mentor to her, but in the end Mae still betrayed her. In the ending scene, watching her friend in a hospital, not showing concern but wondering when the technology will be available to read peoples thoughts. Mae shows no emotion in this scene, in my opinion showing signs of psychopathy, unable to emulate human emotion or show empathy.

Betraying ones family is a more concrete reason for considering Mae to be a dull villain, family is one of the most important things in a persons life. They are supposed to love you unconditionally and always be there for you. Understandably not all families are like the description above but Mae had a good family. They were originally supportive in their daughter and proud. However they began to see the dangers of the circle and the dangers of going transparent. Mae would not listen, refused to understand, and ultimately ended up losing her family for "the good of the Circle". Mae also lost one of her other love interests, Kalden, who turned out to be the creator of the Circle Ty (holy plot twist). She gives the ultimate betrayal in promising to aid him in the destruction of the circle because he understands the danger of it. He even predicts a totalitarian rise within the company. Mae ends up telling the other Circle member and forever silencing Kalden/Ty.

Mae is in fact a dull villain, it just takes the readers some time to come to the realization. At first we sympathize with Mae, pity her, even show empathy because we too get led astray when it comes to technology. However I would like to believe that the readers are capable of feeling human emotion and are able to see the lack of goodness that is in Mae. Betrayal of friends, family, and loved ones is something only a villain could do. She did not do it for the good of humanity, rather for the good of the company that she herself was beginning to take control of.

Love Lost

Love is complicated on the internet, especially on social media. Usually couples are perceived a certain way through their posts and now even more people are meeting online. Relationships are even more complicated in The Circle, especially when transparency is involved. Mae's relationships are all complicated by her transparency and her lack of understanding of a healthy relationship.

Her relationships with three other characters are rocky at best, the first one being with Mercer. Mercer seemed to mesh well with Mae and at first I was grateful for a love interest, I thought they would do well. Unfortunately Mae's involvement with the Circle and her transparency forced Mercer away. He was not comfortable with their private life on view for the rest of the world, which is understandable, and she eventually lost him.

Another one of Mae's love interests has been the elusive Kalden. He is skilled in dodging her questions as well as keeping their meeting private. Their relationship becomes more of a sexual one than anything. After Mae becomes fully transparent she is curious as to how he keeps himself so private. This curiosity "killed the cat" in a sense and their relationship seemed to falter.

The last of Mae's love interests have been Francis who is the most frustrating out of all. They seem like complete opposites but if opposites attract then they are the poster couple for that saying. Francis is blunt, does not support transparency, and Mae is extremely attracted to him. Francis has his insecurities and faults but their relationship seems to be something that could flourish into a long lasting one.

Mae's transparency leads her to not being able to have a full healthy relationship with anyone, privacy is a thing of value seen by some of the love interests, but she just doesn't understand. Her lack of knowledge of a healthy relationship, as well as why privacy is a good thing gives her the consequences that can be foreseen. No relationship, and a lack of utter disappointment.