In Doubt by John Patrick Shanley, Father Flynn opens his sermon by saying, "Your bond with your fellow beings [is] your despair. It [is] a public experience, shared by everyone in our society" (5). Here he talks about a type of isolation and loneliness that everyone is bound to experience. September 12, 2012, University of Notre Dame's star linebacker, Manti Te'o, was struck with tragedy when his beloved "girlfriend" died from her short battle with leukemia just hours after his grandma had died. Following their deaths, Te'o then dedicated his season in honor of these two powerful women in his life. This all changed when on December 6th, Te'o found out that his relationship with his girlfriend, Lennay Kekua, was a hoax. Not only had she not died, she never even existed. The story and the circumstances surrounding the story were so bizarre that the entire country was transfixed by how a well-respected, highly religious, all-American football player preparing to lead his team in the national Championship game could be caught up in such a hoax. No one knew the truth and it seems as if no one will ever find out. This makes Manti Te'o's online dating hoax an example of postmodern doubt because of its lack of resolution and its uncertainty about the reliability of our current online relationship lifestyle.
             There are so many conspiracy theories and controversies over the relationship between Manti Te'o and Lennay Kekua that everyone is doubtful about what actually happened. It is unclear whether Manti Te'o was an innocent victim, an integral part of the hoax from the start or a naive participant after an unfortunate set of circumstances started to unravel. Theories arise but the truth remains elusive. Some people contend that Te'o was in on the hoax from the outset in hopes of generating headlines and the sympathy of Heisman voters. Others say Manti is gay, knew he was ...