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Ryan Hennessy
Dr. Erin-Dietel McLaughlin
WR 13300
10 October 2014
Facebook Frenzy
Released in 2010, The Social Network was an immediate success, as it was nominated for
eight Oscars and won three of them. It was also nominated for six Golden Globes and won four
of them. Director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin take the viewers on the journey of
Mark Zuckerberg, portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg. The movie began with Zuckerberg showing off
his genius by crashing the Harvard network by creating a site called FaceMash, after his
girlfriend broke up with him. It then went on to exhibit Zuckerbergs encounters with the
Winklevoss twins and the creation of his idea for The Facebook. In between all of this, the movie
flashes to the present lawsuits that Mark was involved in with the Winklevi and his ex-best
friend, Eduardo Saverin. The movie takes us through Marks encounters with Sean Parker (Justin
Timberlake), the man who created Napster. Zuckerbergs relationship with Parker is what leads
into finally ending his relationship with Eduardo Saverin, forcing Saverin to sue Zuckerberg. In
the end, basically everyone comes out extremely wealthy, money wise; however, relationships
were broken, feuds were formed, and social media would never be the same. David
Fincher forces the audience to ask many thought-provoking questions about wealth,
relationships, and how those relate to true happiness.
The Social Network perfectly portrays why wealth is not directly equal to happiness. In
fact, it also exhibits some situations that wealth is not related to happiness at all. The case of
Eduardo Saverin is a great example of this, as he is a businessman who inherently cares about

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money and wealth. However, unlike some, Saverin proved to the viewer that he only cared about
making money the correct way. He was not interested in the way people like Sean Parker wanted
to make money through using people. He did not believe Zuckerberg and Parker handled
Facebook ethically, and he eventually felt completely left out of the process, especially because
they were using his money to continue funding the company. Either way, Saverin still became
very wealthy through the making of Facebook, but that has no correlation to how happy he is
because, by the end of the movie, he is completely distraught about the breaking of his friendship
with Zuckerberg and the poor handling of Facebook, a company he co-founded. Along with
Saverin, but on a different spectrum, Sean Parker is another character the film uses to show of
how wealth and happiness have no direct correlation. One may think that Sean Parker is actually
a very happy man because of the vibe he gives off, but, as the movie progresses, it becomes clear
that he is actually very unhappy. Wealth actually did a tremendous amount of harm to Parker. It
opened him up to very unhealthy situations and substances. For example, in one of the last
scenes of the movie, Parker is pictured in a dimly lit room at a house party with girls a number of
years younger than he with copious amounts of cocaine. Parker is a very wealthy man, but that
obviously does not make him a very happy, healthy man. Lastly, Mark Zuckerberg shows no
care for wealth at all through the whole process of making Facebook; however, after the final
scene of the movie, in somewhat of a footnote before the credits, we learn that he became the
youngest billionaire in history, proving the point even more that just because someone is
wealthy, it does not necessarily mean that they are happy.
If someone is wealthy, it also does not mean that they are automatically unhappy;
however, good, healthy relationships are a key component to happiness. Once again, Zuckerberg,
the youngest billionaire in history, proves this statement perfectly, and the last scene of the

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movie is the best example of this. In the last scene, the viewer sees Mark sitting in front of a
computer with a blank, depressed stare on his face, and when the camera turns, it is revealed that
he was staring at Erika Albrights Facebook profile. Albright was Zuckerbergs ex-girlfriend,
and at the beginning of the movie, they broke up because of Marks condescending,
awkwardness with her. When the viewer sees Zuckerberg press the Request button, it is clear
that her breaking up with him was a very traumatic experience for him. The audience can see his
eyes that he realizes that he messed up with her, Saverin, and anyone else in his tumultuous path
to the top. By the end of the movie, Zuckerberg has no relationships, which does not only add to
his unhappiness, but it is also extremely unhealthy to not have at least one friend to converse
with. This final scene really affects the audience by connecting with the pathos, proofs of
emotion; appeals to the values of the audience, as the audience actually feels emotionally
connected to Zuckerberg for the first time throughout the movie (UWP). The movie portrays a
downtrodden Zuckerberg, finally realizing that he truly is alone. Historically, movie audiences
love rooting for the underdog, which may be why the viewer finally begins to feel for
Zuckerberg, as this is also the first time we see a break from the usual stone-faced, emotionless
person that he is.
Like Zuckerberg, Saverin became very wealthy through the Facebook-creation process,
but that also did not make him a happy man. Throughout the movie, the scenes switch back and
forth between the lawsuits and the creation and development process of Facebook. Every time
the scene switches back to the lawsuit, the audience sees Saverins emotional unsteadiness. He
did not seem to be as upset about the money loss as he was about being disrespected and used by
Zuckerberg and losing him as a best friend. Finally, once again, Sean Parker is the epitome of
unhappiness in The Social Network. Parker has no friends, and he only ever develops

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relationships with people he can use for his own benefit. Throughout the movie, there are two
major instances that reflect Parkers lack of relationships with others. Saverin hated Parker the
first time he met him. He hated the fact that he could not stop talking about himself and that he
drew Zuckerbergs attention away from him. However, maybe the greatest example is when
Zuckerberg, the one who was closest to Parker throughout the movie, did not even care that he
was in jail. To add on to that, there was even the thought that Mark called the police on him!
Parker proves to be the most depressed out of anyone in the movie, shown through his drug
problem and womanizing ways. All three of these men are extremely wealthy; however, none of
them are happy at all. One of the largest reasons for that is because of their lack of good, healthy
relationships with others.
Plot can tell the audience a lot about the characters and their emotional state, but
appearance also tells a great deal about the emotional, mental, and physical state of the character.
The author of An Overview of Rhetoric, Herrick, even suggests that the visual can add a great
deal. He says, The aesthetics of rhetoric are elements adding form, beauty, and force to
symbolic expression (Herrick 14). With the following visuals from the movie, the audience can
understand the characters in a much deeper sense. Without certain visuals, the audience does not
get the full picture of the personalities and the motives of the characters. Zuckerberg, for
example, dresses like a complete slob. He does not care how he presents himself at all, even in
serious situations, such as the lawsuits. He is pictured wearing a hoodie, shorts, and even opentoed sandals. This shows the audience that he has no care for looking wealthy or presentable, and
he especially does not care at all what people think of him. It is very fitting that an unhappy man
dresses like one. On another hand, Eduardo Saverin dresses the part of a wealthy businessman on
Wall Street, portraying a very ambitious young man who cares about how he presents himself

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and what others think of him. For example, when he is attending the Millionth Member Party
in California he comes dressed in a suit and tie. When asked why, he responded with I didnt
know whether to dress for the party or for the business meeting, so I kind of dressed for both.
His whole ambiance and dress shows that he is serious about his work and cares about earning
money and respect from his peers and his father. He dresses like a man who is trying extremely
hard to do well with his life, but clearly there have been obstacles, such as Mark Zuckerberg and
Sean Parker, that he needs to get over. Once again, lastly, Sean Parker dresses like the
stereotypical celebrity, which is fitting, because thats exactly what he thinks he isa celebrity.
He wears jeans and button down shirts in just a very laid back look. He dresses perfectly to
portray his character because he acts like a celebrity. He thinks hes all that and, like many
celebrities who think they are all that, he has many internal problems with drugs and
promiscuity. He is insecure with himself, and that is the biggest reason for his unhappiness.
At the end of the movie, David Fincher reveals to the audience the outcome of the
settlements. Zuckerberg became the youngest billionaire in the world, even with having to
release a large chunk of money to Saverin and the Winklevoss twins. However, the greatest
success for Zuckerberg was that he created a massive social networking site and created a name
for himself, his goals from the beginning. Next, Saverin received a unknown settlement through
the lawsuit, but he was able to get his name placed back on the masthead, restoring his cofounding credit. Finally, Sean Parker was allowed to retain a 7% ownership of Facebook, which,
in the grand scheme of things, still reels in a great amount of money for him. After learning this,
one may ask the question So, if they all got what they wanted, then why wouldnt they be happy
at the end? To answer that question, the characters emotional side must be taken into account.
Zuckerberg has no relationships by the end of the movie, a key component of happiness. Saverin,

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although on the surface it seemed like his dignity was restored, still felt extremely disrespected
by his ex-best friend. Lastly, the fact that Parker has even more money does not take away the
fact that he still has these great internal problems, like drugs and womanizing. Therefore, yes, the
characters received mostly what they wanted through the settlements, but their emotional sides
took over by the end of the film, and they are still distraught with relationship, emotional, and
personal problems.
The Social Network is not only a fantastic movie, but it also teaches many valuable
lessons about life, dealing with money, and interactions with others. It teaches that interactions
with people and healthy, two-way relationships are a necessity in life. Without them, it will feel
as though there is a huge, gaping hole that must be filled. That is exactly what Mark Zuckerberg
experienced, and he finally realized it at the end. The movie also uses the example of Sean
Parker as what not to do with large sums of money. It portrays the many risks that come along
with wealth, such as drugs and shallow lifestyles. Overall, David Fincher did a wonderful job
exhibiting these moral lessons throughout The Social Network.

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Works Cited
Herrick, James A. "An Overview of Rhetoric." The History and Theory of Rhetoric. 2nd ed.
Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2001. 1-30. Print.
The Social Network. Dir. David Fincher. Perf. Jesse Eisenberg. Sony, 2010. DVD.
University Writing Program. "What We Teach." // University Writing Program // University of
Notre Dame. University of Notre Dame, 2014. Web. 10 Oct. 2014.

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