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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
"The Machine Stops" is an intriguing dystopian story where the humans live kind of like they do in the movie Wall-E. The Machine runs their entire lives, and they think wanting to go out to the planet is distasteful and pointless. This book is short, but the message is powerful. I enjoyed it, but it's also a sad story/warning for becoming to reliant on technology.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A classic dystopian tale that is best appreciated read in light of it's 1909 publication date. It's very short and would make a perfect Twilight Zone episode.
I find E.M. Forster too dry for my tastes. Room With a View was just okay for me. In this instance, Forster's dryness works. Dystopian fiction functions well sitting on the foundations of detachment.
In our current world where social connections are made through computers, where art, novels, and culture sit comfortably in the digital sphere, where service jobs are replaced by computerised machines (I visited my first human-free petrol/gas station recently), the story is a fantastic and disturbing visionary parallel.
3.5 stars
full review @ ink + chai
I find E.M. Forster too dry for my tastes. Room With a View was just okay for me. In this instance, Forster's dryness works. Dystopian fiction functions well sitting on the foundations of detachment.
In our current world where social connections are made through computers, where art, novels, and culture sit comfortably in the digital sphere, where service jobs are replaced by computerised machines (I visited my first human-free petrol/gas station recently), the story is a fantastic and disturbing visionary parallel.
3.5 stars
full review @ ink + chai
The first piece of dystopian literature. A short story, but really interesting. Since it was written in 1909, it's fascinating to see the tid bits of internet-like existence that these characters have. A quick read, but a good one.
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Rating: 9/10
The Machine is much, but it is not everything.
It feels like Forster travelled to the 2020s, witnessed our alienation, technological dependence, isolation, and warped social relationships, and went back to 1909 and wrote about it.
I expect writing from this time to be conscious of technological change but more in its relationship to work, like in HG Wells and Jack London, not as something that colonises and suplants social existence, as we've come to view it with the advent of smart phones, social media, etc.
Like the best of 'prescient' sci fi, it's not about predicting the finer details of what technology might exist, but having a strong feeling for how future technology might impact us and our ways of relating to each other and to our environment.
The Machine is much, but it is not everything.
It feels like Forster travelled to the 2020s, witnessed our alienation, technological dependence, isolation, and warped social relationships, and went back to 1909 and wrote about it.
I expect writing from this time to be conscious of technological change but more in its relationship to work, like in HG Wells and Jack London, not as something that colonises and suplants social existence, as we've come to view it with the advent of smart phones, social media, etc.
Like the best of 'prescient' sci fi, it's not about predicting the finer details of what technology might exist, but having a strong feeling for how future technology might impact us and our ways of relating to each other and to our environment.
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated