The Machine Stops by EM Forster
Dystopia? No, that topia!
I’m going to give you a story synopsis, and then a question. Synopsis first:
In a world rendered unlivable by climate change, humanity is forced underground. Their interactions with fellow humans is done by video conference, for both work and pleasure. All of their needs are met at the touch of a button and delivered directly to their isolated rooms. A semi-sentient artificial intelligence called The Machine serves each person individualized content based on their perceived interests and the input of nebulous panels of industrialists. As The Machine becomes more integral in every day life, it also becomes both more revered and less understood.
Now, the question: when do you think that story was written?
Are you ready for this? That was a description of The Machine Stops by EM Forster, and it was written in 1909.
In lieu of my usual review this week1, I want to talk about this unsettling and prophetic short story. And the best part is, you can read it for free, here!
It’s only 25 pages long and it’s the kind of story that sticks to your bones. Go give it a read and come back here to discuss!
Discussion
EM Forster is possibly the most famous and decorated author of whom you’ve never heard. Born in 1879, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature 22 times. He was offered (and declined) knighthood in 1949. In 1961 he was one of the first five authors to receive the Companion Of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature. He died in 1970 at age 91, and you didn’t even send flowers. Tsk tsk.
The Machine Stops is probably Forster’s most discussed work, and that’s true for three reasons. First, it’s just a really good short story. It’s inventive and impactful, and packs a lot into 25 pages. Second, it directly inspired just about every modern dystopian work that came after it, from Brave New World to 1984 to Wall-E to Her. In fact, most agree that it is the very first technological dystopian fiction.
More than any other reason, however, is that it is uncannily prophetic of modern times. The Machine Stops predicts:
Video conferencing
Television
Instant messaging
Remote work/learning
Telehealth
Transcontinental commercial flight2
Sedentary life styles enabled by technology
Artificial intelligence
Technology that progresses beyond any one person’s ability to fully understand it
Algorithmic content curation
And more. This was all in 1909. Do you know what else happened in 1909? The Titanic began construction. The city of Tel Aviv was first founded in the Ottoman Empire. Errol Flynn and Francis Bacon were born. And here’s EM Forster describing Zoom, and not only that, but how it would impact our lives on a global scale. If you’re making a list of people who were most likely to have been secret time travelers, EM Forster has got to be at the top of the list.
I’ve been on a bit of a dystopia kick lately, and outside of the works I’ve reviewed on TPS, I’ve been hitting the classics: Brave New World, 1984, Animal Farm, The Parable of The Sower, Farenheit 451, etc. The Machine Stops is, I think, a great entry point if you have any interest in these kinds of things. I can hear you thinking3 - why would I want to read about a world gone so wrong when the world I live in has…well, you get the idea? I sympathize, I really do. Here’s my pitch.
Dystopian fiction (DF) does something rather magical. In a world where we are often presented with so many people trying to convince us that their opinion is fact, that their point of view is correct, that there is one unassailable truth and that those who don’t buy in are morally/ethically/spiritually bereft - DF presents a more nuanced, subtle antidote. It doesn’t tell you what to think, or chastise you for how you interpret something. What it does is present a unique vision of a world gone to extremes (or at least, gone to a conclusion drawn from the author’s current worldview), and asks you to inhabit it for a bit. Look around, smell the air, and listen to the inhabitants. Most importantly, it asks you to do this without response. You don’t have to justify your feelings. You don’t have to defend your position. You are just invited to be and reflect, for your own benefit. I find that in a modern era that is so noisome, DF is quiet. I feel that I have learned more about my modern world by absorbing what some great thinkers thought could be, instead of listening to a panel of talking heads trying to sell me on what is.
Soapbox, dismounted. If any of that last paragraph resonates with you, I suggest you take half an hour and read The Machine Stops. See if that triggers any of the same feelings, or at least gives you a perspective on your current situation. I think you may be pleasantly surprised. Then, remember that this was written 16 years before most American homes had electricty, and then pick your jaw back up.
Memorable Quotes
But it was fully fifteen seconds before the round plate that she held in her hands began to glow. A faint blue light shot across it, darkening to purple, and presently she could see the image of her son, who lived on the other side of the earth, and he could see her.
Again, 1909. Facetime.
He broke off, and she fancied that he looked sad. She could not be sure, for the Machine did not transmit nuances of expression. It only gave a general idea of people — an idea that was good enough for all practical purposes, Vashti thought. The imponderable bloom, declared by a discredited philosophy to be the actual essence of intercourse, was rightly ignored by the Machine, just as the imponderable bloom of the grape was ignored by the manufacturers of artificial fruit. Something “good enough” had long since been accepted by our race.
I tell you, this passage made my next Zoom call feel…depressing.4
Vashti was seized with the terrors of direct experience.
I just love that phrase: “the terrors of direct experience”
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this little diversion from my usual postings, and if you did, let me know and maybe I’ll do more in the future. The Machine Stops really resonated with me, and I hope it will with you as well. And if it doesn’t, well…there’s probably a social media algorithm to help you forget about it.
Go touch some grass.
And definitely having nothing to do with the fact that I haven’t finished my latest book yet…
6 years after the Wright brothers first flight, and >40 years before any commercial flights that resembled the ones described
Ironically, a major plot device in many of these books.
I should clarify - more so than usual.