Overview of Sci-Fi short Story, "The Machine Stops"

"The Machine Stops"
Source: TheMachineStopsFilm.wordpress.com

In this futuristic short story by E.M. Forster, humanity no longer resides on the surface of the Earth, but far below. The air above is unable to sustain life (or so everyone is led to believe). Human action, need, and desire are guided by the Machine: a super computer that caters to a person’s every wish. Need a hot bath? There’s a button for that. Need to give a lecture about Australian music? There’s a button for that.

Sameness is like a disease that has spread across civilization. Every room in every part of the underground Earth looks the same, everyone speaks the same language and feels the same sort of god-like worship for the Machine. The goal of the people is to eventually ‘be free from the taint of personality; live colorlessly’. Living underground requires certain characteristics, so those babies that are born with athletic traits are euthanized, as an athletic person would never be content with a life of solitary confinement. When people want to visit, they do so via cinamotrophes (3-D images of each other, like video chat). To see someone physically over a great distance, people travel by air-ships. The thought of touching one another or seeing daylight is abhorrent.

Vashti is a conformist, of the highest degree. However, her son, Kuno, has discovered that humanity has lost touch with each other, and with Nature. He visits the surface (without permission from the machine), and supposedly encounters others. Vashti is embarrassed that her son would go against the Machine, and both of them know that his actions will mean his eviction from his room underground (meaning, he will be forced to live above-ground, which will kill him).

Kuno does not care that he will be Homeless. He is passionate about what he experienced on the surface: “"Cannot you see, cannot all you lecturers see, that it is we that are dying, and that down here the only thing that really lives in the Machine? We created the Machine, to do our will, but we cannot make it do our will now. It was robbed us of the sense of space and of the sense of touch, it has blurred every human relation and narrowed down love to a carnal act, it has paralyzed our bodies and our wills, and now it compels us to worship it.”

After Kuno’s unscheduled visit to the Earth’s surface is made known to others, above-ground visits are made illegal. Another change is the re-instatement of religion (before it was thought to be perverse to be spiritual in any capacity). The religion that forms is based around the love of the Machine, and its all powerful knowledge and applications.

Themes in this story are plentiful. To begin with, man has lost touch with being an individual. The idea of conformity is one of comfort and pleasure. To be different is dangerous and unheard of. Another theme is man’s acquiescence to technology and the risks and rewards behind that. Technology in the story serves man’s every need so that the people begin to pray to it, considering it a divine being (though they acknowledge time and time again that it is a man-made structure). Is it right to worship something simply because it provides for you, even if it is clothing you, feeding you, keeping you safe? Do those conditions create the need for a spiritual connection?

There is an theme in the story that really resonated with me, and that is man’s ignorance to the past. People perpetuate traditions, habits, and cultural norms without knowing why (often without caring why. The narrator states “Humanity, in its desire for comfort, had over-reached itself. It had exploited the riches of nature too far. Quietly and complacently, it was sinking into decadence, and progress had come to mean the progress of the Machine.”

Once the Machine stops, society breaks almost instantly. People are used to being taken care of, and they do not know how to exist without the thrum of the Machine, and all that it provides for them. As humans equally dependant on technology, I wonder how quietly (or loudly) we would fade after our Machines stopped. 

Terms in Narratology

 Chaucer as a pilgrim from
Ellesmere Manuscript, 
Early Edition of "The Canterbury Tales"
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Peter Barry describes the terms involved in the study of narratology. Narratology is comprised of many elements culminating in great storytelling, some of which both Dante and Chaucer use in The Miller’s Tale and Vita Nuova.

For example, Barry  writes about the use of time in a story. Every story has a beginning, middle, and end, but, as Barry puts it, “stories tend to begin in the middle,” (235). That is not to say that stories to not have flash-backs, or even fast-forwards, but to begin at the true beginning of a story can be (at times) boring. The literary term for flash-back is analeptic, with a flash-forward being proleptic. Geoffry Chaucer’s The Miller’s Tale seems to begin in the middle; a drunken miller begins to tell the story of the jealous carpenter and his wife. The reader only knows this because the narrator sets up the backstory first, in analeptic fashion.

In the same way, the basic narrative mode of The Miller’s Tale is both diegetic and mimetic. Diegetic is when part of the story is summarized in a few sentences, while mimetic is the opposite. Mimetic storytelling is full of detail and conversation. The beginning of Vita Nuova is most certainly mimetic because of the detail in which the narrator describes the meeting of his love, Beatrice: “She appeared dressed in noblest colour, restrained and pure, in crimson, tied and adorned in the style that then suited her very tender age,” (Dante 5). Section 2 of Vita Nuova is proleptic because the narrator fast-forwards nine years later after meeting the girl of his dreams.

Works Cited

Barry, Peter. Beginning Theory. England: Manchester University Press. 2009. Print.

Alighier, Dante. Vita Nuova. 1295. Web.

An Analysis of Zora Neale Hurston's short story "Sweat"

Zora Neale Hurston-
American Author (1935)
By: Author unknown
Source: Wikimedia Commons

 Hurston's story "Sweat" depicts an abusive and selfish husband, Sykes. Delia, Sykes wife, has taken physical, emotional, and verbal abuse from Sykes for more than 15 years. Sykes treats his wife as a petulant teenager treats his mother: with little respect, but still expecting to be fully taken care of. Certainly, Sykes has some sort of mother-complex, even preferring big women to the skinny Delia. Though his mistress is described in an unflattering light ("a hunk uh liver wid hair on it"), it could be that Sykes finds bigger women attractive because he associates soft curves with a maternal figure.


Sykes is financially dependent upon his wife (since all he does with his own wages is gamble) and that makes him angry, angry enough to want to punish Delia, and even kill her. Though Delia's situation is not a happy one, it is not a rare one either. Any man is capable of the darkness found in Sykes. During the story, the other men in town describe the sort of man they believe Sykes to be: "There's plenty men dat takes a wife lak dey do a joint uh sugar-cane. It's round, juicy an' sweet when dey gits it. But dey squeeze an' grind, squeeze an' grind an' wring tell dey wring every drop uh pleasure dat's in 'em out. When dey's satisfied dat dey is wrung dry, dey treats 'em jes lak dey do a cane-chew. Dey throws em away." Many men, whether they are black, white, Asian or Hispanic, can treat women just as Sykes treats Delia.

All the same, Delia does seem somewhat stuck in her situation because of her race. The men in town gossip about Delia and Sykes, fully aware of how he has beat her for their entire marriage. Not one of the gossipers mentions aiding Delia, or calling the police on her behalf. The one thing that works as a temporary deterrent against Sykes is when Delia threatens to call "the white folks" on him. Would Delia have felt as helpless against an abusive husband had her character been white? I think so. Any woman who takes physical abuse for fifteen years might feel as though she had no other option but to take the abuse for the remainder of her marriage. However, this warrants repeating: Delia does seem somewhat stuck in her situation because of her race.

How Pound and Eliot Changed Modernist Poetry

 "Leathad na Cròice"
By Richard Webb (2006).
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Poems like "Hugh Selwyn Mauberly" and "The Wasteland" seem to embody the standard of Modernist poetry. Other Modernist poets like Moore, Millay, and Williams share the aesthetic element of Modernism, which is to allow each line of prose to fall naturally and playfully. However, the sensibility of most Modernist poetry hardly feels playful; poems by Pound and Eliot seem to share their dark perspectives of the world, their thoughts on existentialism, and other feelings through the use of their experiences and memories.

Eliot uses the first person perspective heavily in his poems, such as 'I have', 'I read', or 'I will show' in "The Wasteland". For example, these lines can be interpreted as a memory or experience of Eliot's because of the way they are presented to the reader:

"My cousin’s, he took me out on a sled,

And I was frightened. He said, Marie,

Marie, hold on tight. And down we went."

"Ezra Pound"
By Alvin Langdon Coburn
(1913)
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Though he does not use the same first person perspective as Eliot, Pound also seems to reflect on his own life in "Hugh Selwyn Mauberly" when he writes:

"For three years, out of key with his time,

He strove to resuscitate the dead art
Of poetry; to maintain "the sublime"
In the old sense. Wrong from the start –"

By basing their poetry from their own thoughts and experiences, Eliot and Pound bring a cultural disparity to their work, as every human can bring their cultural baggage to the table, so to speak. Because of that disparity, the Modernist poems contain a sense of realism that is relatable on a much wider scope.

The Racial Implications of Herman Melville's "Benito Cereno"

"An Attack on a Galleon"
Artist: Howard Pyle (1905)
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Herman Melville’s story Benito Cereno chronicles the American Captain Delano’s experience with the Spaniard cargo vessel, the San Dominick. Upon first boarding the vessel, Delano is surprised to see black slaves roaming the ship freely. He looks around for a captain, or any white man in authority, and he soon comes upon the Spaniard, Benito Cereno. Benito appears sickly, as his coughing fits continually interrupt his words. Constantly at Benito’s side is his black servant, Babo.

To Delano’s eyes, Babo is the perfect servant. He is sweet, loyal, and Delano says of Babo to Benito, “I envy you such a friend; slave I cannot call him,” (Melville 3). Though there is plenty of strange activity on the boat that puts Delano off his guard (slaves sharpening hatchets, a black child’s violence that goes unpunished after he strikes a Spanish boy and draws blood), Delano lets his good nature convince him that everything is orderly enough on the San Dominick. What Delano is unaware of is the mutiny aboard the ship; the Africans are in charge of the Spaniards, a thought that Delano seems too naïve to comprehend. The mutineers have disguised their actions so as to stake a claim on Delano’s boat.

Benito Cereno’s view of blacks is partly an antidote to racial stereotypes, while at the same time, it presents another stereotype. African-Americans as obedient, jovial, and ignorant. It took almost the entire story for Delano to realize that the slaves were capable of a great deal more than he had assumed possible for black men and women. Not only had the slaves murdered their owner (Benito’s friend Alexandro Aranda), but they had the intelligence to arrange the duplicitous meeting between “Captain” Benito and Captain Delano, driving the circumstances to their advantage.

What I found to be another stereotype in the story was the fact that the slaves were the antagonist. In plenty of stories, the black man is seen as ‘bad’ or ‘wrong’, and usually in parallel to their dark skin. I did not like that the slaves were the antagonist, even though the story hinted at this possibility more than once (unbeknownst to the trusting Delano). An interesting note was the comparison of the savagery between the slaves and the white authorities: the slaves took Aranda’s body and made of it a sort of display, like a warning on the prow of the ship (a skeleton). And yes, that seems barbaric and disgusting, but when Babo is tried and hanged, his head is put on a pike for display in the city of Lima, another warning of a different sort, but not really different at all. Perhaps a point Melville was trying to convince the reader of is that, despite race, men are very alike in terms of behavior, as both races in the novel are capable of great violence and great intelligence.

Morris Sweetkind and "Poetry in a Scientific World"

Morris Sweetkind’s article “Poetry in a Scientific World” offers a different view on why poetry is still relevant to a society engulfed by technological advances.

Author: John Forster, 1678.
Source: Library of Congress via
Wikimedia Commons

Some of Sweetkind’s main points include the importance of poetry in curriculum. While it is true that many students do not see poets at the helm of society (primarily it is politicians and engineers), poetry has a place in education because it can teach things that science cannot. Sweetkind outlines the four components of a healthy individual that the writer Matthew Arnold once spoke of:

 (1) the power of conduct; 

(2) the power of  intellect  and knowledge; 

(3) the power of beauty;

(4) the power of  social life  and manners

In excluding poetry in the sole pursuit of scientific query, Sweetkind believes that a person is only reaching one-fourth of their potential (the power of intellect and knowledge), (360).

Even with all the knowledge of science at his or her fingertips, there is a still a question as to how it can be applied to the world. Will the student use the knowledge they have to judiciously better the world, or will they use it irresponsibly to destroy the world?

Though Sweetkind’s essay is written in the 1970’s, the points he makes about the division of poetry and science are still relevant. Our society today is still heavily centered around technology and advancement. It seems as if everyone has a Smartphone attached to their finger. Book sales have declined and everything is becoming digitized. Still, a complete digitalization of things like books, movies and music is not all bad. Inventions like Amazon’s Kindle have encouraged reading, and Kindles are even being used in some school classrooms.

Sweetkind spoke of technology as being desensitizing and I partly agree with him. Technology is efficient and convenient, but, as Sweetkind suggests, at what cost? 

Works Cited:

Sweetkind, Morris. “Poetry in a Scientific World”. The English Journal, 59.3 (1970): 359-36. JSTOR. Web. 3 October 2011.  

Moral Themes in "The Fellowship of the Ring"

The hand of Sauron, wearing the One Ring. 2005,
Author Katie Tegtmeyer.

Through the world of books, a reader can experience many things without leaving the comfort of their favorite chair. A book can take a reader to Phuket, Bath, or St. Louis. While reading, a person can meet new people, or imagine what it would be like to skydive, engage in espionage, or both at the same time.

Literature is far more important for another reason; it can guide a reader’s moral compass. Since long ago when fables and parafables were popular, literature and ethics were entwined. Stories like “The Tortoise and the Hare” and “Prodigal Son” explain to the reader life lessons in a simplistic way, much like the Bible. Somewhere along the years, literature and ethics began to part ways. 

According to Adia Mendelson-Maoz, the divide between ethics and literature began in the times of Aristotle and Plato, continuing on through the first half of the twentieth century, (112). Mendelson-Maoz takes a quote from writer Oscar Wilde in his preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, which sums up the feelings echoed throughout the academic community about linking literature and ethics: “There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.”

Times have changed yet again, and the parallel concerning literature and ethics has seen a revival. James Adamson writes, “Although literature and ethics have different methods, strategies, and goals, they are both forms of writing which deal with human lives; they both can be viewed as models of moral attention” (92–93). There are many books that include ethics or morals as part of the story. In Stephen King’s novella The Body, the reader understands why the lead character Gordy feels it best to leave the body ‘unclaimed’ by either group; it is a question of what is really right and what is really wrong. Flashfoward by Robert J. Sawyer takes the reader through a world where fate does not govern all. Sawyer’s story illustrates to the reader that the future can be changed, based on our own actions and choices, right or wrong as those choices may be. Another perfect example of moral themes found in literature would be The Lord of the Rings (or LOTR). J.R.R. Tolkien’s three story arc is set in a fantastical world beyond the imagination of many, and yet, he still manages to convey moral concepts in each part of LOTR, many of them found in The Fellowship of the Ring.

Part one of LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring, features many themes. None are as present as the theme of pity and mercy in the face of death. While Gandalf the Grey wizard is explaining to Frodo Baggins the origins of how the Ring came to rest in his fate, he describes the story of the creature Gollum. Gollum had the ring for 500 years, but the Ring chose to leave him. By chance, Bilbo Baggins finds the ring in Gollum’s cave and takes it for his own. Bilbo had the chance then to kill Gollum, who was a deranged and dangerous creature. Frodo wonders aloud at why his uncle did not, and he says to Gandalf, “What am I to do? What a pity that Bilbo did not stab that vile creature, when he had the chance!" Those words spark a conversation between the two that is as follows:

Joe Sofranko as Frodo, 2007
Theguyinblue 

           “Pity? It was Pity that stayed his hand. Pity, and Mercy: not to strike without need. And he has been well rewarded, Frodo. Be sure that he took so little hurt from the evil, and escaped in the end because he began his ownership of the Ring so. With Pity.”

            “I am sorry,” said Frodo. “But I am frightened; and I do not feel any pity for Gollum.”

            “You have not seen him,” Gandalf broke in.

            “No, and I don’t want to,” said Frodo. “I can’t understand you […] after he did all those horrible deeds […], he deserves death.”

           “Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise cannot see all ends. I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it. And he is bound up with the fate of the Ring. My heart tells me that he has some party to play yet, for good or ill, before the end; and when that comes, the pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many---yours not least.”-(Tolkien,  68-69).

Gandalf’s words suggest that a higher power may be at work, as he puts it “for good or ill". Even though Gollum is a reprehensible creature (a thief, traitor, and murderer), to decide his death or the death of others is not necessarily up to one person to deliver. Judgment in death must never be decided lightly, or (maybe as Tolkien believed) by human beings at all.

One of the recurring moral themes in The Fellowship of the Ring is the idea of temptation, and corruption from power. Several characters are offered the chance to have the Ring for themselves and do with it what they want, characters like Gandalf, Elrond, Tom Bombadil, Aragorn, and Galadriel. Though they may desire it, they do not accept the Ring because they know it has only the power to destroy.

Elrond is a very old elf, and saw the destruction Sauron wrought with the Ring during the Great War. For this reason, and others, he does not take the Ring. Men are easily drawn in by the power of the Ring; Aragorn almost could not resist Frodo’s offer to take the Ring from him. Aragorn is a hero of the story and displays more moral fiber than most, therefore he decides rather easily not to take the Ring.

Depiction of "Rivendell": Jardim Tropical Monte Palace in 
Funchal, Madeira. 2009, Author Tim Walker. 

One of the members of the Fellowship has a harder time withstanding the call of the Ring: Boromir of Gondor.

From the very beginning of the quest, he thinks the Ring can be used as an instrument of good. He believes that it might save his kingdom, Gondor, from ruin. At the end of The Fellowship of the Ring, he tries to physically take the Ring from Frodo. But Frodo is able to escape. Later, Boromir is asked to help the two Halflings Merry and Pippin from a group of Uruk-hai. Perhaps because it was meant to be, or perhaps because Tolkien wanted to show that giving into temptation brings dire consequences, Boromir is slain while defending Merry and Pippin. One could argue that he sought repentance in trying to save the two Hobbits. Either way, Boromir’s moral compass led him astray and with his death, he may have been able to find redemption.  

The Fellowship of the Ring is full of moral themes, such as pity and mercy, judgment in death, temptation, and redemption. However, LOTR is not the only story worth analyzing for ties of literary and moral themes.  Ford Jameson believes that “every text contains traces of social, political, and ethical issues, whether in an overt form, or unconsciously.” Whether delving into a romance novel or science fiction, elements of ethics are bound to be identified. There does not have to be a separation between ethics and literature. Ethics and literature naturally go together, and that is not a bad thing. Literature is a kaleidoscope of knowledge, rife with teachings about every facet of life. Ethics has found a niche in literature (again), whether some agree with its place or not.

Works Cited

Adamson, James. Against Tidiness: Literature and/Versus Moral Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998. Print.

Jameson, Ford. The Political Unconscious. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1981. Print.

Mendelson-Maoz, Adia. “Ethics and Literature: Introduction”. Philosophia 35  (2007) 35:111–116. Web. 25 Aug. 2011.

            

           Tolkien, J.R.R. The Lord of the Rings, Part One: The Fellowship of the Ring. Toronto: Methuen, 1971. Print.