Category: Communications Lab

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Week 1: Response to “The Machine Stops” E.M Forster – Chloe Chan

“The Machine Stops” by E.M Forster is a science-fiction short story that projects the dystopic possibilities that technology will ultimately bring upon humanity. The short story takes place in an underground society where each member of society lives in an isolated room whilst worshipping “the Machine” which provides them with most of their daily needs.  The main character Vashti is a representation of the ideal member of this society, she spends her time producing and discussing ideas. Her role in the short story is highly juxtaposed with the second main character of the story, her son, Kuno, who lives on the other side of the world stands out as a pillar of opposition in contrast to the rest of the members of society. 

This short story is an eerie interpretation of our modern world as technology has monopolised our day to day functions, especially with the introduction of apps such as ‘wechat’ allows individuals to isolate themselves in their home, not needing to leave their home to eat, or communicate with friends, or to source out other forms of entertainment. This short story critiques technology as it is “[used] for bringing people to things instead of for bringing things to people” eliminating the need for people to acquire their needs physically. Furthermore, the isolation in the small hexagonal cells also represents the physical isolation that is generated as a byproduct of technology.

Ultimately, the Machine collapses, which leads to the demise of the Earth’s population. The author attempts to convey the catastrophic effects that technology may have to our society encouraging readers to attempt to detach themselves from our devices and to make an effort to interact with the world around us.

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Week 1: Response to “The Machine Stops” E.M. Forster – Harry Paragas

Written in 1909, E.M. Foster’s The Machine Stops is a dystopic projection of humanity in the distant future. In was an idea borne out of the collective fear of the rapid and visible industrialization that marked by that era—smoke guzzling, bulky, machines. With time those machines became more and more complex, with more levers, a vaster range of applicability and function, no longer limited to the industry, but also to the household. It’s inner workings hidden, and only buttons to send directives for the machine to carry out almost invisibly. Foster’s far projection of this development sees human civilization, living, breathing, existing, and eventually worshiping by way of the machine. In the story of 2 named characters, Vashti and her son, Kuno, demonstrated are two clashing philosophies. Vashti, comforted by her hexagonal room, and all of its functions was completely and utterly comfortable limited to its confines. In the room she felt solace and control, she determined when the lights would turn on, what lectures to listen to, what music she heard, when she would sleep etc. In pressing the buttons her life became regimented. Her son, on the other hand, would see it to not only be mundane, but lifeless and limiting. This manifested itself in his curiosity to leave the room, something only attributed to his character, and forced on Vashti. Kuno felt being confined to the room robbed him of creativity and individuality. Kuno felt that their dependence on the machine stripped them of their control, the central committee even, was not above the machine, for they existed, in his eyes, to ensure the perpetual existence of the machine. As the philosophies clashed throughout the story, the machine while thought to be omnipotent and infinite, came to an unexpected, outside of Kuno’s warning, halt. And in its halt, the galleries of humans collapsed in on each other, killing the “civilization.” However, in Kuno’s estimations, the homeless that lived beyond the machine survived. 

Today this begs the question of survival and reliance. Given how much of our lives are built on technology, and the developing reliance on it for many different ways, at what point do we lose our control over such technology? The story suggests it need not be when artificial intelligence exists. Instead, Foster suggests that our surrendering of control will occur when we completely rely on it. That then begs the question of when do we stop developing technology? Advancements in many ways have increased our standards of living by a great deal. Should we ever stop?

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Week 1: Response to “The Machine Stops” – Samanta Shi

I am impressed by Forster’s imagination of future technology, as he lived during a time when machine learning and AI, let alone the internet, had not been born.  As I was reading “The Machine Stops”, I could not help but think about the various TV shows that address similar dystopian concerns but through different means, such as The 100 or Altered Carbon.  When it comes to dystopian futures, authors and creatives across the board seem to enjoy the exploration of the following themes:

  • human dependence on machinery,
  • lack of autonomy and independence,
  • the displacement of humans and their homes (underground vs. in space),
  • lack of physical contact, emotional dissonance and even incapability,
  • lack of empathy, imagination, originality, and
  • the significance of a higher power / being / source of guidance to human harmony and function

All of which were present in Forster’s piece.  I was particularly struck by this dialogue:

“You are beginning to worship the Machine,” he said coldly. “You think it irreligious of me to have found out a way of my own. It was just what the Committee thought, when they threatened me with Homelessness.” At this she grew angry. “I worship nothing!” she cried. “I am most advanced. I don’t think you irreligious, for there is no such thing as religion left. All the fear and the superstition that existed once have been destroyed by the Machine. (Pg. 11)

Forster questions the meaning of religion and shows a different way in which it can manifest itself. What will humans turn to when “there is no such thing as religion left”? Will they find another form of religion?  Where or who will they seek guidance and meaning from?   Later on in the text, Forster reminds the reader that [hu]man is responsible for the machine:

‘The Machine is the friend of ideas and the enemy of superstition: the Machine is omnipotent, eternal; blessed is the Machine.’ And before long this allocution was printed on the first page of the Book, and in subsequent editions the ritual swelled into a complicated system of praise and prayer. The word ‘religion’ was sedulously avoided, and in theory the Machine was still the creation and the implement of man. (Pg. 19)

I believe that Forster was commenting on this idea that when humans “play God” by creating something that is perhaps beyond them (“The Machine”), then they must not forget to consider the potential consequences.  The dystopian nature of the story almost suggests that humans should perhaps avoid facilitating the progression of technology to its fullest potential because it will indeed get out of hand.   Unsurprisingly, when the machine stops, chaos ensues and the fate of the characters is sealed.  At the very end, when Kuno says that “Humanity has learned its lesson”, we experience a slight moment of hope only to be followed by the conclusion that humans do not but taint:

For a moment they saw the nations of the dead, and, before they joined them, scraps of the untainted sky.

As we develop ever more sophisticated technology, we need not forget the importance of not only understanding the consequences of the invention or innovation we put forward, but also proposing a plan for how we might deal with that new reality. Regardless of how prepared we might be, I am convinced that we have an unavoidable blindspot. How might we mitigate the implications of that blindspot? Now, that is the question.

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Week 1: Response to “The Machine Stops” E.M. Forster – Kyra Bachman

Edward Morgan Forster’s 1909 short story seems to be eerily foreshadow the internet age and the central role it plays in modern society. The setting takes place in a dystopian underground society where civilization has prophesied a machine that manages and provides for the workings of their daily lives. The implications of dependence on technologies is expressed symbolically following the dynamic between Vashti and Kuno. Tension arises between Vashti- a pious worshipping of the machine and Kuno, who questions the value of the machine. Kuno wishes to interact face-to-face with his mother but this behavior viewed as impolite and unsophisticated. It has become that people’s existence is completely dependent on the machine. Kuno eventually discovers the truth after his journey above ground where he learns that the machine is simply a product of human invention that is now controlling them. Once the machine stops, the entire society unravels and descends into a mass chaos .

Given that this piece was published over a century ago- long before the invention of internet, smartphones, or artificial intelligence- I found Forster’s prediction on the damages of dependence on technology especially interesting due to its relevant application to modern day. “The better a man knew his own duties upon it, the less he understood the duties of his neighbor, and in all the world there was not one who understood the monster as a whole” is a fitting visualization. The short story presents a dilemma how to continue on the path of technological advancement without letting the ease and illusion of it take priority real life.

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Week 1 : Response to “The Machine Stops” E.M. Forster – Matthew Fertig

I’ve always found the idea of ‘the future’ to be intriguing. How there is nothing we can certainly say about what the future will be or look like, but can still predict certain things to a pretty high degree. Thus, Forster’s work naturally intrigued me. Many authors and artists throughout history have done their take on the future, almost always including idealistic or dystopian technologies beyond current comprehension. Forster’s work hits home more so than others because of just how much accuracy he has. While we are not, or may think we’re not, reliant on some all-knowing machine, we’re definitely more alike than not alike Forster’s future. It’s commonly known that companies and governments receive intel from our activity on computers and use this knowledge to further their cause in some way. Retail companies can use your browsing history to introduce you to a similar product, for example, or phone companies can recommend accessories because they know you bought a particular phone model. So much of our society today is based around technology and others doing things for us. We hear it all the time but technology is slowly taking more and more away from human interaction and deepening our reliance on devices to do our work for us. I found it interesting how throughout Forster’s writing he frequently prefaced sentences with “of course,” revealing the bizarre realities of his society to be common knowledge. While at first it struck me as odd to continuously have to prove what he says to be obvious, that in and of itself is a truth about technology today: things we’ve become so use to, we almost can’t imagine a world without.