The Dream of Watching The Social Network with Mark Zuckerberg

The Dream[1] of Watching The Social Network with Mark Zuckerberg

He grimaces at the opening scene
A little too close to home he admits
but the girlfriend[2] isn’t real; an amalgam
of various tropes and a wish-fulfillment
curse placed on him by a few ex-friends,
although there really is a Facebook profile of her
public figure, and only created after the movie came out.

My real girlfriend[3] resembles the Asian girls
Eduardo[4] and I catch on the rebound in the movie,
but they’ve been portrayed as psycho sluts
especially the one latches onto Eduardo.
Analyze that.

I ask him why the synthetic love interest
becomes the most important element
in the film, bookending the conflicts
that seem closer to the truth:
friendship lost over business,
business come a cropper over trust.

The Erica character gets people talking to her
They don’t want to know she’s not real.
They argue with her, bargain with her
congratulate her over something
that never happened. Be honest,
have you ever looked up someone
from ten years ago or more?

I blush a little, nod.

There’s your answer.
That’s how the truth lies.