- Introduction:
- Background information about Gary Shteyngart’s novel, Super Sad True Love Story, published by Random House in 2010
- Establish the dystopian universe as entirely dependent on technology (society has been completely shaped by it)
- Identify parallels between SSTLS society and current world
- Introduce Lenny and Eunice
- Two people that are completely different: Age, intelligence, race, lifestyle, etc.
- Emphasize the difference in Lenny and Eunice’s dependence on technology as a life supplement rather than a distraction from the real world
- Their relationship has helped them find happiness in their screwed up society
- Make claim that Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was completely fabricated by the technology available in their era, followed by summary of departments that will be used to prove this theory
- Influence of technology on social interactions and relationships in the real world, and how Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was created as a manifestation of technology
- How the SSTLS universe shapes individuals to be defined by technology, how Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was controlled by technology and authority figures from beginning to end
- Influence of technology…
- …On social interactions
- Alač, Morana. “Moving Android: On Social Robots and Body-in-Interaction.” Social Studies of Science4 (2009): 491-528. JSTOR. Web. 24 Oct. 2015. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27793307.
- Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was both developed and destroyed by technology, and that even their most intimate moments were nothing but technological creations.
- …On relationships
- Technology inhibits our ability to form intimate relationships.
- No relationship formed in this society can exist without being influenced by technology.
- Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was created as a manifestation of this Lenny and Eunice are very different people.
- Quotes from SSTLS
- “…He would get all intro on me…but he couldn’t.” (pg. 44)
- Ben and Eunice went to Lucca. Whenever Eunice insulted Ben, he turned off his äppärät community so she couldn’t see what he was thinking, and after hooked up, Eunice had a breakdown and Ben tried to calm her down by saying she looked slutty and had a high fuckability ranking. Technological advances hinder even simple social interactions between humans.
- “I still have…for easy reference.” (pg. 50-51)
- Lenny is old school, as he prefers paper lists to technology
- “Eunice Park is sitting…close to her.” (pg. 99)
- Even though this is the first time Lenny and Eunice have seen each other since Rome, they are not interacting with each other. Lenny is writing in his diary about Eunice and Eunice is shopping on her äppärät. Here again we see the age/technological difference between Lenny and Eunice
III. How the SSTLS universe shapes individuals to be defined by technology
- Technology plays a key role in the dystopic society’s everyday life
- From constant äppärät interaction with total strangers to credit poles displaying financial information on city streets (pg. 54-55), it is impossible to escape the wrath of technology. It isn’t unusual to wonder how anyone can form truly meaningful relationships in a world filled with public “fuckability” rankings and where people have their heads in their äppäräts.
- Behe, Rege. “Gary Shteyngart’s ‘Super Sad True Love Story’ Matches Low-Tech, Digital Age.” ProQuest. McClatchy-Tribune Business News, 22 Aug. 2010. http://search.proquest.com.proxy.library.emory.edu/docview/746340947/fulltext/D947BCDCED2041A0PQ/3?accountid=10747. 24 Oct. 2015.
- This article briefly elaborates on society’s view of books in comparison to technology, and how Lenny and Eunice’s relationship has been impacted by these views. This article can expand my argument that the relationship between Lenny and Eunice was created by technology. By showing that all of society is implicated in the web of technology too thoroughly to form lasting relationships, it will prove that Lenny and Eunice are no exception.
- Lenny and Eunice’s relationship was controlled by technology and authority figures from beginning to end
- Quotes from SSTLS
- “I was looking for clues…savior of a beaten girl.” (pg. 37-39)
- Lenny’s detailed internet stalking of Eunice
2. “By reading this sign you have denied existence of the object and implied consent.” (pg. 43, 81) - This common saying is everywhere. At the end of announcements and bulletins, this commandment from the American Restoration Authority is just another way of reminding individuals who is in charge.
- Staten Island Bar scene (pg. 81-94)
- Closing
- Reiterate that Lenny and Eunice’s relationship initially appeared to exist despite the wide and far reach of technology, but in truth simply a product of the dystopic society’s technological advances.
- The influence of technology on social interactions and relationships was unavoidable
- “So What”: The shortcomings of this dystopic universe, as far as technology is concerned, are not imagined, but emphasized issues that are present in today’s society.