The Power in a Name

In the 2003 book, The Circle, Dave Eggers brings up the effects and powers of names, not only to humans but to the products they create. Names are given to define a one person, animal or thing. Everything at the Circle has a name, whether it be a building or new technology. Each building on the campus was named after a time period as in the Renaissance, Old West, Enlightenment and Cultural Revolution buildings. The décor inside each building resembled that time era. All of the new technology that was created throughout the book was given a trendy, but yet still substantial name. Anneli Knight, professor of media law at University of Sydney and author of “It’s all in the Name,” states that “a catchy business title can mean the difference between you making a go of it or it going horribly wrong” (Knight). Dave Eggers edges the reader to envision the excitement that Francis has when he changes the name of his product from Child Track to TruYouth. TruYouth was a better choice for the name of the product because it doesn’t sounds as scary or threatening compared to Child Track, and the name is similar to the teen/adult social media site that the Circle also created, named TruYou. He is thrilled the name change occurred before he released his product, because now his product will have a better chance at becoming popular. As said before, TruYou is the more adult version of TruYouth, and it’s a place for adults to communicate and get their ideas out. The only catch to this site is that you can only make your name on the site your given name from birth. The Circle does not want any incidents of identity theft on their sites, as well as trying to prevent catfishing from happening. The Circle offers insight on the importance of naming products developed by a company and the interest and significance of the human name and voice.

When Mae first arrives at the circle she was just Mae Holland, the new girl, but now she was Mae Holland, the ‘it’ girl. Everyone on the campus knew Mae or knew of her, while the population outside of the Circle followed her on her social media sites or watched her camera she wore on her neck for the transparency project. While Mae was first registering for all of her accounts for the Circle, Renata had told her that she had already made an account and username for Mae to use. Renata chose the name ‘MaeDay”, which Mae liked it, but she was upset because someone else chose her name for her and she did not have the power to identify herself. The majority of the population does not enjoy being called a nickname by someone he or she does not know. I personally get bothered when someone I am not close to calls me by a name that I did not OK. Dave Eggers points out that importance of being able to identify one’s true self.

Mae was excited to find out that she was chosen to be one of the Circlers to participate in the CircleSurvey project. Mae looks at this opportunity as an award to be one of the participants to be asked about her style, her purchasing patterns and her predilections (Eggers 228). The Circle employees are expected to answer at least 1,000 CirleSurvey questions a day. These questions are asked to the Circle employees, because the outside population looks up to these employees. The CircleSurvey questions are asked through a headset that Mae wears. Mae could answer the questions in sentences or just by simply saying “smile” or “frown.” Mae chose the sound of a tiny bell to notify her when her answer has been received and understood. She had to choose another signal to notify her when it was time to start answering questions again to be able to meet her quota for the day. While Mae was going through the signal options, Pete told her to hold on while he set something up in her headset. Mae then heard her name whispered through the headset, but the voice who said her name was her own. Mae explains the experience as “very intimate and [it] sent a strange swirling wind through her (Eggers 232). Dave Eggers is provoking thought into the reader because he makes them think about when they hear their own voice or their name being said. Most people hate hearing their own voice, because it sounds nothing like the voice they hear in their head while they talk. Rachel Feltman, the author of “Why You Probably Hate the Sound of Your Own Voice,” explains that the reason our voice sounds much different in our heads is because when humans talk their eardrums and inner ear vibrate due to the sound he or she is letting out, but the ear also vibrates more because of the how humans produce sound. Feltman explains that people’s “vocal cords and airways are trembling, too, and those vibrations make their way over to auditory processing as well” (Feltman). The human body can better carry the lower and richer tones of the human voice, and the air does not carry them as well as our bodies. Humans are only accustomed to hearing their voice in their head, so when they hear their voice from another source it sounds odd, more high pitched, and she or he will probably hate hearing their own voice (Feltman). When Mae’s name would be said through the headset again and again throughout the book she would not respond to the headset, so that she could continue listening to her name being said. While she was first getting used to hearing the voice in headset, Dave Eggers writes:

“It was her voice, she knew, but then somehow it sounded less like her and more like some older, wiser version of herself. Mae had thought that if she had an old sister, an older sister who had seen more than she had, that sister’s voice would sound like this.”

Mae, as many others, did not like hearing her name in a voice that sort of sounds like her own but not quite. She admits it is indeed her own voice, but that is just sounds like a more mature version of herself or if she had an older sister. Mae is still intrigued by how the surveyor sounds almost like Mae but not quite. The headset voice continues to grow more accustomed to Mae’s actual voice and changes over time to better sound like Mae.

Dave Eggers shows the process of naming products within a company. He does this by explaining how the Circle itself comes up with names for its products. There is a lot of thought behind a company name or a person’s name. Eggers also emphasizes the importance of personal identity and only having one true identity. This way there is no room for misunderstandings on social media or in social settings. Mae’s experience with the CircleSurvey and it reproducing Mae’s voice to say, “Mae,” encourages the reader to think about hearing themselves say their own voice and what occurs when this happens. The Circle has many other themes throughout the book that could be picked out, and the book is a great read all around.