Comparing Dehumanization In 'The Machine Stops And Modern Times'

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Afsana Habib
603-HSD-VA
Section 00002

Essay

Man has constructed numerous inventions, each more resourceful than the previous one. The two works, “The Machine Stops” (1909) by E.M. Forster and Charlie Chaplin’s film Modern Times (1936) share the common ground of the expansion of technology however putting mankind in danger. Machinery should only help humans progress rather than creating a disaster or a gap among them. Men lose in the long run seeing that machines evolve, revealing that men are less resilient than machinery. As demonstrated in the two works, the use of machinery can create a dependence upon it, further lead to humanity’s dehumanization and take you to the brink of insanity. …show more content…

Chaplin criticizes the effects of technology and shows it through a comical level. For instance, the opening scene shows a flock of sheep, being herded into their pen followed by a scene of workers rushed out of a subway. This portrays them to be as such; innocent men caught in the traps of an industrialized society. However, Chaplin is that one black sheep that attempts to escapes from the sheep and machine like behaviour.The power of advancement is also portrayed in this film. One of the scenes show the boss agreeing to a demonstration of the automated lunch feeder, in hopes of cutting costs of lunch breaks. The machine fails and forcefully feeds Chaplin bolts that were accidentally left on the tray. This suggests that he is literally forced to consume progress. The device demolishes him by compelling him to consume its own parts. Further on, Chaplin gets caught in the machine, running smoothly between the gears. He is once again devoured by the machine, unable to defend himself from the Industrial age. Chaplin can be characterized as a product of industrialization as opposed to the man he

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