A response to E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops.
A free ebook from http://manybooks.net/
This book was first published in 1909 — during the Industrial Revolution. In the wake of life-changing new inventions such as steam-powered ships, railways, internal combustion engines and electrical power generation, Forster writes somewhat of a cautionary tale about man vs. machine. In a time when it seemed machines and factories would soon suffocate human life, Forster dramatizes these experiences to create a world neglected and forgotten by man who has become subservient to machines — “The Machine.”
What spoke to me most was the lack of physical human interaction. The characters were obsessed with “ideas” and spoke intellectually with each other through some sort of two-way video, never speaking or interacting face-to-face. Physical touch had become unacceptable.
Modern technology is very different from Forster’s imaginary future, but some could argue the internet has created an alternate reality in which we are slowly beginning to give less importance to physical interaction. Just as in The Machine Stops there will always be two camps. Those who prefer to wholly exist in this alternate reality and those who use the alternate reality (the internet) as a tool while still upholding basic human needs and desires, like physical interaction.
The Machine Stops
A response to E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops.
A free ebook from http://manybooks.net/
This book was first published in 1909 — during the Industrial Revolution. In the wake of life-changing new inventions such as steam-powered ships, railways, internal combustion engines and electrical power generation, Forster writes somewhat of a cautionary tale about man vs. machine. In a time when it seemed machines and factories would soon suffocate human life, Forster dramatizes these experiences to create a world neglected and forgotten by man who has become subservient to machines — “The Machine.”
What spoke to me most was the lack of physical human interaction. The characters were obsessed with “ideas” and spoke intellectually with each other through some sort of two-way video, never speaking or interacting face-to-face. Physical touch had become unacceptable.
Modern technology is very different from Forster’s imaginary future, but some could argue the internet has created an alternate reality in which we are slowly beginning to give less importance to physical interaction. Just as in The Machine Stops there will always be two camps. Those who prefer to wholly exist in this alternate reality and those who use the alternate reality (the internet) as a tool while still upholding basic human needs and desires, like physical interaction.