Romance has been diminished to something so much less beautiful than what it used to be, before the onset of social media. What has been presented to us is three kinds of romantic figures-one of the past, Mercer, one who is exceedingly open and, Francis, and another who is a mystery, Kalden. Now what really adds to the essence of the novel is how divergent the three figures and how they manage to impact the life of Mae. It is quite interesting to see the implications of such varied beliefs on Mae.

One character that really helps brings out the negative element of The Circle. As Mae views him as quite an antagonist, she turns a deaf ear to his warnings and advice regarding her new employers. He presents to the readers a more layman and third person view of the implications of social media. The fact that Mae absolutely detested him might have been one of the reasons behind her making the decision regarding becoming transparent. His warnings as merely a result of a middle-class thinking, as he is aware of the effects of a monopoly gaining complete access to someone’s life. They also act as a very strong foreshadowing element, however, due to her lack of respect for him, Mae is repulsed by his advice. Mercer also lacks in credibility and rhetoric skills, as he is incredibly brash with his advice. He plays an integral role as a character, presenting to the readers with the view of a civilian, whose life didn’t really depend on the monopoly but was afraid of being dragged into something that might cause his downfall.

Mae’s other boyfriend figure is the loving and emotionally scarred  Francis. He plays an incredibly vital role as a character who has been completely ridden over by the monopoly, which exploits his trauma to their own good by making him think of the all-knowing concept as a way of preventing any kind of child abuse or kidnapping. He is presented as a complete opposite to Mercer and his earnest devotion to the Circle makes Mae incredibly uncomfortable, as she is not used to the openness he shows about their relationship, to the whole world. He doesn’t respect Mae’s privacy and even goes to the extent of filming a sexual experience with her. He stands as a symbol of a character who shows us a different aspect to the acts of the monopoly and how it had certain positive effects, such as increasing security for the people. He was brainwashed using his own weakness and is presented as an incredibly vulnerable character. Mae’s feelings for him are seemingly selfish as she only goes to him when she is dissatisfied with herself or jealous regarding someone else liking him. Despite his weak character, his immense rhetoric capability in terms of ethos, really influences Mae to maintain a romantic relationship with him, despite his sexual and romantic shortcomings.

Kalden, the last romantic figure, stands as everything that goes against the preaching of the Circle, as he is exceedingly reserved and secretive, unlike the organisation he worked for. He is unlike any other character because despite being an employee of the organisation, he has not been brainwashed and therefore can offer an objective view of the implications of the Circle. He warns Mae and we see that she is exceedingly frustrated yet attracted to his mysterious vibe. However,Mae is quite deaf to his advice and therefore his role isn’t of much importance to her except it gives more perspective to the reader. Due to his mysterious demeanor, he lacks all rhetoric, since Mae is neither emotionally attached to him nor does she have a belief in his advice.

Thus, all the romantic figures are presented to us as various perspectives of the monopoly. We are presented with various ways of rhetoric that has been tried to be implemented and whether or not they manage to work. It is quite evident that they have had either negative or positive impacts on Mae’s thought process and acceptance of the Circle’s principles.