Summary: Ms. Mackay divides the Brodie set and begins questioning them about Miss Brodie. I thought this would be the moment where we find out who betrays her, but none of the girls who tell her anything. There are two sewing teachers named Ellen and Alison Kerr who begin to do housekeeping for Mr. Lowther and Ellen Kerr tells Miss Mackay about the night dress under Mr. Lowther's pillow. It seems as though Mr. Lloyd has taken an interest in Rose. Although, his paintings of her and other schoolgirls all resemble Miss Brodie. Sandy insists with “near-blackmailing insolence” that Mr. Lloyd’s paintings reveal his obsession with Miss Brodie. Her attitude angers him, and he kisses Sandy intensely and then insults her.
Miss Brodie chooses to confide in one of the girls and she chooses sandy. she can remark that all of her ambitions are fixed on Sandy and on Rose, who continues to sit for Mr. Lloyd. Miss Brodie says Sandy has insight and Rose has instinct. She also concludes that Miss Brodie wants Rose to become Mr. Lloyd’s lover (i thought Miss Brodie and Mr. Lloyd were lovers? why would she want one of her students to do that?) and for Sandy “to act as informant on the affair.” However, Rose only models for Mr. Lloyd, and Rose is the one who carries the information back when Sandy has sex with him. WHOAAA, this is craaaaazy! After several months, Mr. Lowther’s engagement to Miss Lockwood is announced in the paper. The new girl, Joyce Emily Hammond, also admires her. Taking Miss Brodie’s political views to heart, Joyce Emily disappears from school, and six weeks later students learn that she has run away to Spain and died in a train accident.
Miss Brodie predicts that “Rose and Teddy Lloyd will soon be lovers.” Sandy realizes that this fantasy is not a game, it is real manipulation. Sandy realizes Miss Brodie “was obsessed by the need for Rose to sleep with the man she herself was in love with.” Sandy understands now that Miss Brodie’s has a real intention to play God in the lives of her students: “She thinks she is Providence … she thinks she is the God of Calvin.” Rose is not manipulated into becoming Mr. Lloyd’s lover, however.
Ironically, as she wonders which of the students betrayed her, Miss Brodie tells Sandy that she is “exempt from suspicion.”and Sandy says: “If you did not betray us it is impossible that you could have been betrayed by us.” As a nun, Sandy publishes a book on psychology entitled The Transfiguration of the Commonplace. She is visited by people who admire the book and by other members of Miss Brodie’s set. To a young man who visits, Sandy admits being influenced by her childhood teacher. Eunice lays flowers on Miss Brodie’s grave. Monica asks Sandy about the betrayal, and Sandy asserts, “It’s only possible to betray where loyalty is due.” So here we find out that it is SANDY who betrays Miss Brodie!
Quote: "Monica came again. 'Before she died,' she said, 'Miss Brodie thought it was you who betrayed her.'
'Its only possible to betray where loyalty is dude,' said Sandy.
'Well, wasnt it due to Miss Brodie?'
'Only up to a point' said Sandy." (Spark 136-137).
Reaction: From reading this quote i can infer that Sandy is the one who "betrayed" Miss Brodie. Although, Sandy doesnt feel as though she betrayed Miss Brodie because she didnt owe her any loyalty. When Sandy found out that Miss Brodie was basically trying to play "God" in her students' lives, she didnt feel that she owed her any loyalty. It's weird how the one person Miss Brodie trusted the most, is the one who betrayed her!
Monday, June 20, 2011
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (pages 1-68)
Summary: To be honest, the first half of the novel is very confusing to read. It is full of flashbacks from Miss Brodie's life that occur at random moments. Its hard to tell whether you're in the past or the present, and sometimes there are little details about the future that are thrown in. Miss Brodie taught at the Marcia Blaine School for girls, and her pupils were called "The Brodie Set". Each one of the girls were famous for something. Monica Douglas- famous for her mathematics skills
Rose Stanely- famous for sex
Eunicer Gardiner- famous for her gymnastics and swimming
Sandy Stranger- famous for her vowel sounds
Miss Brodie had expressed to the girls that there were plots going around to get her to resign from Blaine. This had happened a couple times in the past but Miss Brodie never resigned. The other teachers were not familiar with her teaching methods and felt that she taught her students meaningless things that had nothing to do with the curriculum. Some members of the faculty feel that her teaching style would be better for a progressive school but Miss Brodie refuses to leave Blaine.
Miss Brodie tells the girls of her lover named Hugh who proposed to Miss Brodie but ended up dying. The girls were all in tears because of the story and when Miss McKay walked by, they all were silent because they didnt want her to know what they were talking about. Then the novel flashes to the future and tells us that Mary Macgregor, a member of the Brodie set, is going to die in a hotel fire. Mary Mcgregor is very clumsy and was always blamed for everything. When her boyfriend leaves her, she thinks about a time when she was really happy, and she says that she was really happy with Miss Brodie.
Then the story switches over to Sandy Stranger and Jenny Gray when they are 10years old and having tea. They talk about "sexual intercourse" and how the days with Miss Brodie were supposed to be the happiest days of their lives. Then the story switches to Eunice, who plans on returning to Edinburgh and she wants to put flowers on Miss Brodie’s grave. When talking to her husband, she says that Miss Brodie was forced to retire, because she was “betrayed by one of her own girls,” and right after World War II she died. Hmmm... who betrayed Miss Brodie?!
Miss Brodie begins to have an affair with two teachers at Blaine. Monica catches Miss Brodie kissing Mr. Lloyd and then later Mr. Lowther and Miss Brodie are absent from school for 2 weeks, so it is assumed they are together. A man exposes himself to Jenny and is questioned by the police. the woman police officer becomes the protagonist in one of Sandy's stories. Sandy and Jenny notice that Rose has developed, which was probbably the start to Rose being famous for sex.
Quote: "Just after the war. She was retired by then. Her retirement was rather a tragedy, she was forced to retire before time. The head never liked her. There's a long story attached to Miss Brodie's retirement. She was betrayed by one of her own girls, we were called the Brodie Set. I never found out which one betrayed her" (Spark 26).
Reaction: I was completely shocked when i read that conversation Eunice had with her husband about Miss Brodie! I'm soooo curious as to who betrayed Miss Brodie and how. I think one of the girls must have told the head about her affairs with Mr. Lloyd and Mr. Lowther because it seems thats the only secret Miss Brodie really had. I'm not sure which girl has betrayed her yet because all of the girls seem to have a sort of dedication to miss brodie and a faithfulness to her. They all appreciate her so I have NO idea who betrayed her but im eager to find out, IF the speaker tells us!
Rose Stanely- famous for sex
Eunicer Gardiner- famous for her gymnastics and swimming
Sandy Stranger- famous for her vowel sounds
Miss Brodie had expressed to the girls that there were plots going around to get her to resign from Blaine. This had happened a couple times in the past but Miss Brodie never resigned. The other teachers were not familiar with her teaching methods and felt that she taught her students meaningless things that had nothing to do with the curriculum. Some members of the faculty feel that her teaching style would be better for a progressive school but Miss Brodie refuses to leave Blaine.
Miss Brodie tells the girls of her lover named Hugh who proposed to Miss Brodie but ended up dying. The girls were all in tears because of the story and when Miss McKay walked by, they all were silent because they didnt want her to know what they were talking about. Then the novel flashes to the future and tells us that Mary Macgregor, a member of the Brodie set, is going to die in a hotel fire. Mary Mcgregor is very clumsy and was always blamed for everything. When her boyfriend leaves her, she thinks about a time when she was really happy, and she says that she was really happy with Miss Brodie.
Then the story switches over to Sandy Stranger and Jenny Gray when they are 10years old and having tea. They talk about "sexual intercourse" and how the days with Miss Brodie were supposed to be the happiest days of their lives. Then the story switches to Eunice, who plans on returning to Edinburgh and she wants to put flowers on Miss Brodie’s grave. When talking to her husband, she says that Miss Brodie was forced to retire, because she was “betrayed by one of her own girls,” and right after World War II she died. Hmmm... who betrayed Miss Brodie?!
Miss Brodie begins to have an affair with two teachers at Blaine. Monica catches Miss Brodie kissing Mr. Lloyd and then later Mr. Lowther and Miss Brodie are absent from school for 2 weeks, so it is assumed they are together. A man exposes himself to Jenny and is questioned by the police. the woman police officer becomes the protagonist in one of Sandy's stories. Sandy and Jenny notice that Rose has developed, which was probbably the start to Rose being famous for sex.
Quote: "Just after the war. She was retired by then. Her retirement was rather a tragedy, she was forced to retire before time. The head never liked her. There's a long story attached to Miss Brodie's retirement. She was betrayed by one of her own girls, we were called the Brodie Set. I never found out which one betrayed her" (Spark 26).
Reaction: I was completely shocked when i read that conversation Eunice had with her husband about Miss Brodie! I'm soooo curious as to who betrayed Miss Brodie and how. I think one of the girls must have told the head about her affairs with Mr. Lloyd and Mr. Lowther because it seems thats the only secret Miss Brodie really had. I'm not sure which girl has betrayed her yet because all of the girls seem to have a sort of dedication to miss brodie and a faithfulness to her. They all appreciate her so I have NO idea who betrayed her but im eager to find out, IF the speaker tells us!
Monday, April 25, 2011
The Accidental Billionaires (pages 200-252)
Summary:
Facebook continued to make moves in the cooperate world. Thousands upon thousands of new members were joining each day, it was crazy! The Winklevoss twins (tyler and cameron) were still pretty upset about the way things worked out with Mark. They were all the way in a different country, England to be exact, competing in a rowing race. They lost by about 2 seconds, which was extremely devastating. Then, to add insult to injury, someone asked them if they had a facebook account. Someone in ENGLAND asked if they had a facebook account, which was only open to selected colleges in the US... unbelievable! This reaaaaaally made tyler and cameron mad. That was the last straw for them, they were going to file a lawsuit. Justice had to be served.
Meanwhile, Eduardo was in New York still, completing his internship and finding investors, looking at possible VC's who wanted to be involved with Facebook. While Eduardo was keeping busy in New York, Mark and his roommates, including Sean Parker were having the time of their lives in California. They also had many offers coming at them from big companies, who were offfering a lot of money. Also, Sean was taking Mark under his wing in a way, taking him to all the coolest parties, meeting important people, the works. Eduardo pretty much wasn't in the picture anymore because, well let's face it, he was all the way across the country and the was no way he could be involved in every little decision they made. Speaking of decisions, Mark and Dustin had decided they weren't going to go back to Harvard for the next semester, they were going to take a semester off and work on the facebook, staying in California. On the other hand, there was NO way Eduardo was going to take time off, school meant everything to him. He was a senior, going to graduate in 5 months, it would make no sense for him to take time off to work on the facebook when he had been doing that the whole summer!
When Mark and Eduardo did get the chance to speak through quick phone calls, every time Eduardo would try to inform Mark about the offers he had received and the investments he was looking into, Mark always jumped in to talk about the awesome party he went to with Sean the other night. Eduardo was SICK of Sean. To him, Sean had nothing to do with the Facebook, he was just a HOUSE GUEST, that's it. It was Eduardo's money going into the account for the facebook. It was HIS money that was housing them in California while they went to parties every night. All his money was being wasted and to make it worse, he wasn't even being included, even though he owned 30% of Facebook! Eduardo wrote Mark a very stern letter, talking about his problems with the way things were working out. Mark seemed to sort of brush the letter off, telling Eduardo that he would be more included if he wasn't all the way in New York, if he stayed out in California for a while. Obviously, Mark didn't get the picture, so Eduardo had to take drastic measures. He went straight to the bank and froze the account for the facebook, he had to show them he meant business.
Because Eduardo had financially cut them off, Mark was able to save up his own money to put into the account, which would hold them over only for a short amount of time, because as you know facebook was expanding rapidly. Eventually, Mark had cut Eduardo out of the company completely. Eduardo was so devastated, felt so betrayed that he decided he was going to file a law suit against Mark, because he took away his ownership. Facebook got up to 1,000,000 members within 10 months, which called for a celebration. They had a little party, hosted by Sean of course and there was lots of drinking, smoking and other bad things. Unexpectedly, the cops showed up and Sean was arrested, for reasons unaccounted for. After that, Sean was also cut from the facebook entirely, because frankly his reputation and unpredictable behavior wasn't a good look for making business deals. In the end, to mark, facebook wasn't about friendship, it was never about friends, it was all about business. who knows if he was really friends with Eduardo, maybe he just used him as a sort of financial supplier. It was all about business and at the end of the day, Mark was CEO, he could do whatever he wanted.
Quote: "whatever the reason, he'd walked right up to the Winklevoss twin, and had held out his hand. As the stunned kid had stared at him, Eduardo had let the words come spilling out: 'I'm sorry. He screwed me like he screwed you guys'. And without another word, he had turned-and disappeared back onto the dance floor" (Mezrich 252).
Reaction: When i read this quote, and even before i read it, i felt really bad for Eduardo. I could tell in a way he was jealous of Mark and Sean's sudden friendship and felt like Sean was taking his place. So when he tried to be assertive and make Mark understand what he's trying to say, he ends up getting cut out of Facebook entirely. Even though, he was the one who invested all the money into it, and he was with Mark back when he was in his dorm room, spending hours typing up codes. He and Mark started it together, although it was Mark's idea and work. I could understand how betrayed he must of felt, realizing that theres a chance Mark was never really his friend at all. And when he walks up the his "enemies" and apologizing, It then seems as though Mark was the bad guy all along, not Sean nor Tyler, Cameron, and Divya. They all felt "screwed over" by Mark, but there was nothing they could do about it because Facebook was Mark's creation, he owned it and he was going to do whatever it takes to make it successful.
Facebook continued to make moves in the cooperate world. Thousands upon thousands of new members were joining each day, it was crazy! The Winklevoss twins (tyler and cameron) were still pretty upset about the way things worked out with Mark. They were all the way in a different country, England to be exact, competing in a rowing race. They lost by about 2 seconds, which was extremely devastating. Then, to add insult to injury, someone asked them if they had a facebook account. Someone in ENGLAND asked if they had a facebook account, which was only open to selected colleges in the US... unbelievable! This reaaaaaally made tyler and cameron mad. That was the last straw for them, they were going to file a lawsuit. Justice had to be served.
Meanwhile, Eduardo was in New York still, completing his internship and finding investors, looking at possible VC's who wanted to be involved with Facebook. While Eduardo was keeping busy in New York, Mark and his roommates, including Sean Parker were having the time of their lives in California. They also had many offers coming at them from big companies, who were offfering a lot of money. Also, Sean was taking Mark under his wing in a way, taking him to all the coolest parties, meeting important people, the works. Eduardo pretty much wasn't in the picture anymore because, well let's face it, he was all the way across the country and the was no way he could be involved in every little decision they made. Speaking of decisions, Mark and Dustin had decided they weren't going to go back to Harvard for the next semester, they were going to take a semester off and work on the facebook, staying in California. On the other hand, there was NO way Eduardo was going to take time off, school meant everything to him. He was a senior, going to graduate in 5 months, it would make no sense for him to take time off to work on the facebook when he had been doing that the whole summer!
When Mark and Eduardo did get the chance to speak through quick phone calls, every time Eduardo would try to inform Mark about the offers he had received and the investments he was looking into, Mark always jumped in to talk about the awesome party he went to with Sean the other night. Eduardo was SICK of Sean. To him, Sean had nothing to do with the Facebook, he was just a HOUSE GUEST, that's it. It was Eduardo's money going into the account for the facebook. It was HIS money that was housing them in California while they went to parties every night. All his money was being wasted and to make it worse, he wasn't even being included, even though he owned 30% of Facebook! Eduardo wrote Mark a very stern letter, talking about his problems with the way things were working out. Mark seemed to sort of brush the letter off, telling Eduardo that he would be more included if he wasn't all the way in New York, if he stayed out in California for a while. Obviously, Mark didn't get the picture, so Eduardo had to take drastic measures. He went straight to the bank and froze the account for the facebook, he had to show them he meant business.
Because Eduardo had financially cut them off, Mark was able to save up his own money to put into the account, which would hold them over only for a short amount of time, because as you know facebook was expanding rapidly. Eventually, Mark had cut Eduardo out of the company completely. Eduardo was so devastated, felt so betrayed that he decided he was going to file a law suit against Mark, because he took away his ownership. Facebook got up to 1,000,000 members within 10 months, which called for a celebration. They had a little party, hosted by Sean of course and there was lots of drinking, smoking and other bad things. Unexpectedly, the cops showed up and Sean was arrested, for reasons unaccounted for. After that, Sean was also cut from the facebook entirely, because frankly his reputation and unpredictable behavior wasn't a good look for making business deals. In the end, to mark, facebook wasn't about friendship, it was never about friends, it was all about business. who knows if he was really friends with Eduardo, maybe he just used him as a sort of financial supplier. It was all about business and at the end of the day, Mark was CEO, he could do whatever he wanted.
Quote: "whatever the reason, he'd walked right up to the Winklevoss twin, and had held out his hand. As the stunned kid had stared at him, Eduardo had let the words come spilling out: 'I'm sorry. He screwed me like he screwed you guys'. And without another word, he had turned-and disappeared back onto the dance floor" (Mezrich 252).
Reaction: When i read this quote, and even before i read it, i felt really bad for Eduardo. I could tell in a way he was jealous of Mark and Sean's sudden friendship and felt like Sean was taking his place. So when he tried to be assertive and make Mark understand what he's trying to say, he ends up getting cut out of Facebook entirely. Even though, he was the one who invested all the money into it, and he was with Mark back when he was in his dorm room, spending hours typing up codes. He and Mark started it together, although it was Mark's idea and work. I could understand how betrayed he must of felt, realizing that theres a chance Mark was never really his friend at all. And when he walks up the his "enemies" and apologizing, It then seems as though Mark was the bad guy all along, not Sean nor Tyler, Cameron, and Divya. They all felt "screwed over" by Mark, but there was nothing they could do about it because Facebook was Mark's creation, he owned it and he was going to do whatever it takes to make it successful.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
The Accidental Billionaires (pages 150-200)
Summary: the year is ending and Eduardo is offered an internship in New York and Mark decides to stay in California for the summer with Dustin and Chris. Eduardo wasn't comfortable with them being seperated, because of course there would be a lot of people like Sean Parker wanted to get a piece of their creation; it just didn't seem like a good idea. Mark had already made up his mind, he was going to California for the summer.
With Facebook thousands of members each day, Mark, Dustin, and Chris needed more help with the programming so they decided to look for interns. A bunch of computer geeks gathered in the basement classroom to compete in a timed race to do some sort of coding, so Mark could get a good idea of their programming skills.
Meanwhile. Tyler, Divya, and Cameron were getting ready to launch their website, which the named changed to ConnectU. After two years of working on the site, no thanks to Mark Zuckerburg, it was finally ready to launch. They were still upset about all the hype Mark was getting for a web site that he practically "stole" the layout of from their own web site, but they were trying to enjoy this moment.
It turns out that the boys had moved in right next door to Sean's girlfriend's parent's house, in which he was staying at. He expressed to them that after a couple days, he was no longer going to be able to live there anymore and after that he would be homeless. It was like fate had made everything fall into place. Sean ended up staying with the boys and he would be able to help them with facebook and get it advertised out in California, maybe it'd get popular there too. since eduardo wasnt with them in California, he was pretty much out of the picture for the time being, and since he was the once paying for everything and attending meetings in NYC about facebook, that could be a problem.
Quote: "Eduardo might try to hang on- but he was already showing that he didn't have what it took. Poor kid, Sean thought to himself. What happens when the guy standing next to you catches a lightening bolt? Does it carry you up to the stratosphere along with him? Or do you simply get charred while trying to hold on?" (Mezrich 172).
Reaction: I absolutely LOVE this quote. Not only is this just a book about this history of facebook, it also uses a lot of literary devices. I love the idea of a guy (Mark) getting hit by a lightening bulb- a once in a lifetime chance and very very unlikely (Facebook becoming an overnight sensation), and someone else (Eduardo) trying to hold on and make it to the top with him, or get "charred" on the way up, meaning getting left behind while Mark rises to success. I think that this quote might be foreshadowing what is actually going to happen and it also creates suspense. it makes you wonder how this all is going to work out, and if Sean might be taking Eduardo's place, and what Seans true intentions are! This is definitely leading up the the climax :)
With Facebook thousands of members each day, Mark, Dustin, and Chris needed more help with the programming so they decided to look for interns. A bunch of computer geeks gathered in the basement classroom to compete in a timed race to do some sort of coding, so Mark could get a good idea of their programming skills.
Meanwhile. Tyler, Divya, and Cameron were getting ready to launch their website, which the named changed to ConnectU. After two years of working on the site, no thanks to Mark Zuckerburg, it was finally ready to launch. They were still upset about all the hype Mark was getting for a web site that he practically "stole" the layout of from their own web site, but they were trying to enjoy this moment.
It turns out that the boys had moved in right next door to Sean's girlfriend's parent's house, in which he was staying at. He expressed to them that after a couple days, he was no longer going to be able to live there anymore and after that he would be homeless. It was like fate had made everything fall into place. Sean ended up staying with the boys and he would be able to help them with facebook and get it advertised out in California, maybe it'd get popular there too. since eduardo wasnt with them in California, he was pretty much out of the picture for the time being, and since he was the once paying for everything and attending meetings in NYC about facebook, that could be a problem.
Quote: "Eduardo might try to hang on- but he was already showing that he didn't have what it took. Poor kid, Sean thought to himself. What happens when the guy standing next to you catches a lightening bolt? Does it carry you up to the stratosphere along with him? Or do you simply get charred while trying to hold on?" (Mezrich 172).
Reaction: I absolutely LOVE this quote. Not only is this just a book about this history of facebook, it also uses a lot of literary devices. I love the idea of a guy (Mark) getting hit by a lightening bulb- a once in a lifetime chance and very very unlikely (Facebook becoming an overnight sensation), and someone else (Eduardo) trying to hold on and make it to the top with him, or get "charred" on the way up, meaning getting left behind while Mark rises to success. I think that this quote might be foreshadowing what is actually going to happen and it also creates suspense. it makes you wonder how this all is going to work out, and if Sean might be taking Eduardo's place, and what Seans true intentions are! This is definitely leading up the the climax :)
The Accidental Billionaires (pages 100-150)
Summary: Tyler and Cameron were working out on the rowing machines when Divya came up to them, showing them the latest issue of Harvard's Crimson newspaper. It was talking about the overnight sensation, thefacebook.com created by Mark! As Divya continued to read the paper aloud, Tyler grew more and more upset. This whole "facebook" site was definitely gaining popularity and the similarities between their Harvard Connection site that was yet to be running and "thefacebook.com" seemed more than coincidental. "theft" is the word tyler used. Mark stole their idea! In the Crimson, he bragged that he doesn't know why it took Harvard so long to make a site like facebook because he did it in a week. Mind you, Mark put off programming The Harvard Connection for Divya, Tyler, and Cameron for 2 months, saying he was busy with school and other projects, but to Tyler, that was all a lie. He had led them on for 2 months just so steal their ideas and create his own website. They felt like this was completely unfair, but there was no contract, no paperwork or anything that prove Mark had used their ideas for his website or that he even did work for them at all. Tyler decided to call his dad, a very powerful businessman, and tell him everything that happened.
Tyler, Divya, and Cameron wrote a letter to Mark telling him how they felt about him launching "thefacebook.com" while he was supposed to be working for their site and that the sites were very similar. Mark responded with a letter explaining that he was initially intrigued by their project, and after their first meeting, he began working on Thefacebook, using none of the same code of The Harvard Connection. Mark and Eduardo decided that Mark's roommates Dustin and Chris could also help with the site, seeing as how they needed all the help they could get.
Tyler, Cameron, and Divya were so upset by Mark's response that they decided to take things to the next level. They met with the president of Harvard, hoping he would make Mark pay some type of consequences. But, to their surprise, he explained that the situation had nothing to do with Harvard itself, that it was a more personal problem that they needed to work out amongst themselves and that there was nothing they could accuse Mark of because he hadn't violated any contract.
The story then switches over to Sean Parker, a bad-boy computer genius known for founding famous sites like Napster and Plaxo that made tons of money. He stumbled across thefacebook.com and he instantly knew that this website was going to be BIG. That was just the kind of project he needed to take it to a higher level. He ended up meeting up with Mark, Eduardo, and Eduardo's girlfriend Kelly. Mark and Sean talked the whole time, as mark was completely fascinated by Sean, he was like God to him. Eduardo had a shady feeling about Sean, even calling him a "snake oil salesman".
Quote: "Eduardo had a feeling- Sean Parker couldn't possibly have been the only one who'd taken notice of their little Web site. It only a matter of time before deep pockets came calling, pockets that could afford a bit more than a dinner at a fancy New York restaurant" (Mezrich 150).
Reaction: Although I already know that Facebook has become a phenomenon, I can see how quickly it gained its popularity. I personally dont think that Mark stole ideas from the Harvard Connection because 1.) it hadn't even launched yet 2.) Mark hadn't even done any work on their site at all, all he did was look it over. He actually lost interest in it quickly 3) The harvard connection was supposed to be like a dating site for students at harvard, whereas facebook was just a place to make friends of people that attend harvard and, later on people at other colleges. I think Sean parker might be trying to weasel them out of their creation in a way, because all he's interested in is making money, and he might try to take ownership of the site and be taking advantage of Mark, because he looks up to him.
Tyler, Divya, and Cameron wrote a letter to Mark telling him how they felt about him launching "thefacebook.com" while he was supposed to be working for their site and that the sites were very similar. Mark responded with a letter explaining that he was initially intrigued by their project, and after their first meeting, he began working on Thefacebook, using none of the same code of The Harvard Connection. Mark and Eduardo decided that Mark's roommates Dustin and Chris could also help with the site, seeing as how they needed all the help they could get.
Tyler, Cameron, and Divya were so upset by Mark's response that they decided to take things to the next level. They met with the president of Harvard, hoping he would make Mark pay some type of consequences. But, to their surprise, he explained that the situation had nothing to do with Harvard itself, that it was a more personal problem that they needed to work out amongst themselves and that there was nothing they could accuse Mark of because he hadn't violated any contract.
The story then switches over to Sean Parker, a bad-boy computer genius known for founding famous sites like Napster and Plaxo that made tons of money. He stumbled across thefacebook.com and he instantly knew that this website was going to be BIG. That was just the kind of project he needed to take it to a higher level. He ended up meeting up with Mark, Eduardo, and Eduardo's girlfriend Kelly. Mark and Sean talked the whole time, as mark was completely fascinated by Sean, he was like God to him. Eduardo had a shady feeling about Sean, even calling him a "snake oil salesman".
Quote: "Eduardo had a feeling- Sean Parker couldn't possibly have been the only one who'd taken notice of their little Web site. It only a matter of time before deep pockets came calling, pockets that could afford a bit more than a dinner at a fancy New York restaurant" (Mezrich 150).
Reaction: Although I already know that Facebook has become a phenomenon, I can see how quickly it gained its popularity. I personally dont think that Mark stole ideas from the Harvard Connection because 1.) it hadn't even launched yet 2.) Mark hadn't even done any work on their site at all, all he did was look it over. He actually lost interest in it quickly 3) The harvard connection was supposed to be like a dating site for students at harvard, whereas facebook was just a place to make friends of people that attend harvard and, later on people at other colleges. I think Sean parker might be trying to weasel them out of their creation in a way, because all he's interested in is making money, and he might try to take ownership of the site and be taking advantage of Mark, because he looks up to him.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
The Accidental Billionaires (pages 50-100)
Summary: So, I left offf talking about Mark's crazy idea to invent "facemash". The were some houses that he wasn't able to hack into, so he snuck into the houses, connected his laptop to one of theirs, and downloaded the pictures he needed. After his intoxication wore off, he planned to go home, drop off his bookbag, and go to the dining hall to get something to eat. But, when he got to his room, he couldn't help but notice his desktop screen was frozen. "And then it dawned on him. The laptop screen was frozen because it was acting as a sever for facemash.com". Mark had emailed the link to facemash to couple of his friends, for them to check out, and those friends emailed it to their friends, and their friends emailed it to their friends, and so on. In under two hours, the site had already logged 22,000 votes and 400 kids had gone onto the site in the past 30mins! The link wasn't supposed to go out like that, he still wanted to tweak a few things, and check the legalities of downloading those pictures. He knew he'd be in big trouble, so he shut down the site.
Divya showed Tyler and Cameron the article in the Crimson (the harvard newspaper) that was written about facemash.com and they became very intrigued. Mark Zuckerburg sounded like the guy they needed in order to fulfill their Harvard Connection site, so they decided to send him an e-mail.
Mark had to attending an ad board meeting, the administration disciplinary organization, made up of deans and student advisors. He had to talk about the little stunt he pulled and was able to weasle his way out of a probation because he seemed like a kid who didn't mean any harm, and his stunt served as a way of pointing out flaws in the harvard defense system for their websites that they needed to improve on.
Tyler and cameron asked Mark if he'd be interested in working on the codes for their site and mark said he would look into it. Well, he thought through it and decided it wasn't worth his time.He was already stressed out with classes and other projects that he didn't even feel like working on the codes. Also, he was trying to launch his own site, thefacebook.com as well. "Well, Mark wondered, if people wanted to go online and check out their friends- couldn't they build a website that offered exactly that? An online community of friends- of pictures, profiles, whatever- that you could click into, visit, browse around" (Mezrich 79).He and Eduardo agreed to go 70% and 30% on the site, if it were to make money. Mark met with Tyler, Cameron, and Divya and explained to them why he didn't have the site up and running by then and they realized, aside from all the excuses he gave, that he wasn't really interested in it.
He went straight home and began the finishing touches to his site. you needed a harvard.edu email in order to log in, and that would make the site more exclusively popular. Eduardo had gotten into Pheonix and offered to send the think to members of the club, since they were more popular and could spread the word to more people. that was the beginning of facebook.
Quote: "Everyone wanted a piece of Mark, but Mark didn't need anyone else. Everything he needed was right in front of him" (Mezrich 96).
Reaction: I think that quote was very inspiring in a way because when someone is successful or really talented, everyone wants a piece of them to help themselves gain something. I like the fact that Mark didn't rely on anyone else to create his website and that he wasn't going to allow other people to use him, because that's something that people do in everyday life and i think its important to be independent and not let people take advantage of you.
Divya showed Tyler and Cameron the article in the Crimson (the harvard newspaper) that was written about facemash.com and they became very intrigued. Mark Zuckerburg sounded like the guy they needed in order to fulfill their Harvard Connection site, so they decided to send him an e-mail.
Mark had to attending an ad board meeting, the administration disciplinary organization, made up of deans and student advisors. He had to talk about the little stunt he pulled and was able to weasle his way out of a probation because he seemed like a kid who didn't mean any harm, and his stunt served as a way of pointing out flaws in the harvard defense system for their websites that they needed to improve on.
Tyler and cameron asked Mark if he'd be interested in working on the codes for their site and mark said he would look into it. Well, he thought through it and decided it wasn't worth his time.He was already stressed out with classes and other projects that he didn't even feel like working on the codes. Also, he was trying to launch his own site, thefacebook.com as well. "Well, Mark wondered, if people wanted to go online and check out their friends- couldn't they build a website that offered exactly that? An online community of friends- of pictures, profiles, whatever- that you could click into, visit, browse around" (Mezrich 79).He and Eduardo agreed to go 70% and 30% on the site, if it were to make money. Mark met with Tyler, Cameron, and Divya and explained to them why he didn't have the site up and running by then and they realized, aside from all the excuses he gave, that he wasn't really interested in it.
He went straight home and began the finishing touches to his site. you needed a harvard.edu email in order to log in, and that would make the site more exclusively popular. Eduardo had gotten into Pheonix and offered to send the think to members of the club, since they were more popular and could spread the word to more people. that was the beginning of facebook.
Quote: "Everyone wanted a piece of Mark, but Mark didn't need anyone else. Everything he needed was right in front of him" (Mezrich 96).
Reaction: I think that quote was very inspiring in a way because when someone is successful or really talented, everyone wants a piece of them to help themselves gain something. I like the fact that Mark didn't rely on anyone else to create his website and that he wasn't going to allow other people to use him, because that's something that people do in everyday life and i think its important to be independent and not let people take advantage of you.
The Accidental Billionaires (pages 1-50)
Summary:
The novel takes place at Harvard University. The speaker starts off by talking about a gentlemen named Eduardo. He spent most of his childhood between upper-middle class communities in Brazil and Miami, before attending Harvard. Eduardo was at one of the "punch parties", a gathering he needed to go to in order to potentially be apart of the infamous Pheonix club. The Pheonix club was part of Hardvard's elite. They were the most popular guys and they got all the girls. There at the punch party, he met an awkward kid with big curly hair named Mark, Mark Zuckerburg. He was a sophomore (as well as Eduardo), and supposedly he was a master hacker. He had created a program called Synapse that for plug-in mp3 players. He made Synapse available as a free download on the web and major companies were calling him about buying his invention. Supposedly, Microsoft had offered Mark between one to two MILLION dollars to go work for them, and he shockingly turned them down.
Mark and Eduardo exchanged friendly conversation. The asked each other which houses they belonged to (Eduardo- Eliot, Mark- Kirkland) and Eduardo then offered Mark to join him at a party that was being held on his floor. They both agreed to go and went with each other.
Eduardo had received the 4th punch invitation letter and this time he had to bring a date with him. This meant he actually had to talk to a girl. Lets just say, girls weren't exactly knocking down doors to be with him. The punches were going to be based on the dates they brought with them, so he had to make sure to find the perfect girl. He walked up to the hottest girl he knew, Marsha, a blonde bombshell, and asked her to attend the event with him. Surprisingly she said yes, most likely because it was about going to a final club dinner, being a part of the Pheonix.
The story then switches over to two identical twins named Tyler and Cameron. They were the typical jocks with a high social status at harvard. They were at experts at crew and they whole lives seemed revolved around rowing. They were also friends with an indian boy named Divya. They were seniors and tyler and cameron were apart of the Porcellian club, another elite at Harvard. It turns out that the boys wanted to create a social website called The Harvard Connection. The only problem was neither of them had the necessary computer background to actually get the site up and running. The was another member of their group named Victor, who was the computer wiz but he left. So now they needed a new programmer. The idea of the Harvard Connection was simpl; It would be a sort of online dating site for students at Harvard. It would be an easy way for guys like Tyler and Cameron, who spent all of their time rowing, eating, and sleeping, to get girls. Popular guys like them, never had time to get girls because they were so busy doing the things that made them popular. They decided to send out word that they were looking for people and victor said he'd give them some names.
Then, Eduardo arrives in a seminar with a big crate that had a blanket over it. He took a seat next to Mark and showed him what was in the crate, A CHICKEN. Apparently, as part of his initiation into Pheonix, he had to carry around a live chicken with him wherever he went and keep it alive and healthy for a week. Suddenly, the chicken started making loud noises and everyone except the professor heard. Eduardo met a girl named Angie at a Pheonix cocktail party the night before. she had a friend named Monica, and Eduardo wanted to set her up with Mark, so they could go on a double-date, and Mark agreed.
Apparently, the girl for Mark had rejected him and he became furious. He started writing on his blog that he wanted to take the pictures from each houses facebook (at harvard, each house had a "facebook" with the pictures of each person that lived there, nothing like the facebook we have today), and compare all the girls to each other, and possibly farm animals, and have people vote on which was hotter. He then began hacking into the databases of all the houses at harvard and downloading all their pictures. The site would be called Facemash.com
Quote: "Maybe grinning as he downed the rest of his Beck's, he spelled out the introduction that would greet everyone who sent to the site when he finally lauched it:
Were we let in for our looks? No. Will we be judged on them? Yes.
Yes, it was going to be fucking beautiful" (Mezrich 49).
Reaction: My reaction to this quote is a little confused. I dont really understand how just because a girl rejected him, he goes crazy and starts hacking each houses "facebooks" and gathers up the idea to compare girls on a site. I already knew from having a facebook of my own that it was created by Mark Zuckerburg, but i never knew the story behind it, or what his initial intentions were. I thought he just randomly thought to create a social site where people from all over the world could communicate, but after reading about "facemash.com", it makes me view him differently, he was kind-of a jerk! I think he could get in a lot of trouble for hacking the facebook pages at harvard. It also makes me thing of the "Boston" pages on facebook, who also compare pictures of people on facebook and declare whos better look, or who's "fresh" or who has the "best body".. its disgusting!
The novel takes place at Harvard University. The speaker starts off by talking about a gentlemen named Eduardo. He spent most of his childhood between upper-middle class communities in Brazil and Miami, before attending Harvard. Eduardo was at one of the "punch parties", a gathering he needed to go to in order to potentially be apart of the infamous Pheonix club. The Pheonix club was part of Hardvard's elite. They were the most popular guys and they got all the girls. There at the punch party, he met an awkward kid with big curly hair named Mark, Mark Zuckerburg. He was a sophomore (as well as Eduardo), and supposedly he was a master hacker. He had created a program called Synapse that for plug-in mp3 players. He made Synapse available as a free download on the web and major companies were calling him about buying his invention. Supposedly, Microsoft had offered Mark between one to two MILLION dollars to go work for them, and he shockingly turned them down.
Mark and Eduardo exchanged friendly conversation. The asked each other which houses they belonged to (Eduardo- Eliot, Mark- Kirkland) and Eduardo then offered Mark to join him at a party that was being held on his floor. They both agreed to go and went with each other.
Eduardo had received the 4th punch invitation letter and this time he had to bring a date with him. This meant he actually had to talk to a girl. Lets just say, girls weren't exactly knocking down doors to be with him. The punches were going to be based on the dates they brought with them, so he had to make sure to find the perfect girl. He walked up to the hottest girl he knew, Marsha, a blonde bombshell, and asked her to attend the event with him. Surprisingly she said yes, most likely because it was about going to a final club dinner, being a part of the Pheonix.
The story then switches over to two identical twins named Tyler and Cameron. They were the typical jocks with a high social status at harvard. They were at experts at crew and they whole lives seemed revolved around rowing. They were also friends with an indian boy named Divya. They were seniors and tyler and cameron were apart of the Porcellian club, another elite at Harvard. It turns out that the boys wanted to create a social website called The Harvard Connection. The only problem was neither of them had the necessary computer background to actually get the site up and running. The was another member of their group named Victor, who was the computer wiz but he left. So now they needed a new programmer. The idea of the Harvard Connection was simpl; It would be a sort of online dating site for students at Harvard. It would be an easy way for guys like Tyler and Cameron, who spent all of their time rowing, eating, and sleeping, to get girls. Popular guys like them, never had time to get girls because they were so busy doing the things that made them popular. They decided to send out word that they were looking for people and victor said he'd give them some names.
Then, Eduardo arrives in a seminar with a big crate that had a blanket over it. He took a seat next to Mark and showed him what was in the crate, A CHICKEN. Apparently, as part of his initiation into Pheonix, he had to carry around a live chicken with him wherever he went and keep it alive and healthy for a week. Suddenly, the chicken started making loud noises and everyone except the professor heard. Eduardo met a girl named Angie at a Pheonix cocktail party the night before. she had a friend named Monica, and Eduardo wanted to set her up with Mark, so they could go on a double-date, and Mark agreed.
Apparently, the girl for Mark had rejected him and he became furious. He started writing on his blog that he wanted to take the pictures from each houses facebook (at harvard, each house had a "facebook" with the pictures of each person that lived there, nothing like the facebook we have today), and compare all the girls to each other, and possibly farm animals, and have people vote on which was hotter. He then began hacking into the databases of all the houses at harvard and downloading all their pictures. The site would be called Facemash.com
Quote: "Maybe grinning as he downed the rest of his Beck's, he spelled out the introduction that would greet everyone who sent to the site when he finally lauched it:
Were we let in for our looks? No. Will we be judged on them? Yes.
Yes, it was going to be fucking beautiful" (Mezrich 49).
Reaction: My reaction to this quote is a little confused. I dont really understand how just because a girl rejected him, he goes crazy and starts hacking each houses "facebooks" and gathers up the idea to compare girls on a site. I already knew from having a facebook of my own that it was created by Mark Zuckerburg, but i never knew the story behind it, or what his initial intentions were. I thought he just randomly thought to create a social site where people from all over the world could communicate, but after reading about "facemash.com", it makes me view him differently, he was kind-of a jerk! I think he could get in a lot of trouble for hacking the facebook pages at harvard. It also makes me thing of the "Boston" pages on facebook, who also compare pictures of people on facebook and declare whos better look, or who's "fresh" or who has the "best body".. its disgusting!
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