The Machine Stops
E. M. Forster | |
|---|---|
| Occupation(s) | Author, writer |
| Known for | Writing "The Machine Stops" |
The Machine Stops is a science fiction short story authored by E. M. Forster. It first appeared in The Oxford and Cambridge Review in November 1909, later included in Forster's collection The Eternal Moment and Other Stories published in 1928. By 1965, it was acknowledged as a significant novella, featured in the compilation Modern Short Stories and subsequently reprinted in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two (1973).
The narrative is set within a subterranean civilization reliant on an immense Machine that fulfills every need, envisioning technologies comparable to instant messaging and the Internet.
Background
In the introduction to his 1947 Collected Short Stories, Forster characterized "The Machine Stops" as a response to H. G. Wells's 1905 speculative work A Modern Utopia. While Wells concentrated on political themes, Forster focused primarily on technology itself as the dominant controlling entity.
Plot summary
Human beings inhabit underground chambers, isolated and standardized, where the all-encompassing Machine provides for their physical and spiritual requirements. Travel is infrequent; interaction takes place through instant messaging and video calls, emphasizing the exchange of ideas.
Vashti and her son Kuno exist in separate worlds. Vashti fully accepts the Machine-centered existence of producing and sharing recycled ideas. Kuno, a rebellious sensualist, convinces Vashti to visit him. He discloses that he has secretly ventured to Earth's surface, witnessing humans living independently of the Machine’s authority. Threatened with 'Homelessness'—expulsion from their subterranean refuge—Kuno’s defiance is dismissed by Vashti as insanity.
Eventually, respirators for surface excursions are prohibited, a change welcomed by an apprehensive population. A faith known as "Mechanism," venerating the Machine itself, arises; humanity forgets its role as creator and prioritizes the Machine’s welfare above their own. Those who reject this belief are branded 'unmechanical' and subjected to Homelessness. Meanwhile, the Mending Apparatus tasked with repairing the Machine begins to fail, but concerns are ignored due to unwavering trust in the Machine’s infallibility.
Kuno is relocated closer to Vashti and issues a cryptic warning: "The Machine stops." As malfunctions increase and maintenance knowledge fades, the Machine ultimately collapses, bringing this civilization to an end. Kuno visits Vashti’s devastated chamber; before their deaths, they recognize that humanity’s true essence lies in its bond with nature. Survivors living on the surface must reconstruct society while avoiding past errors linked to dependence on the Machine.
Themes
The narrative’s principal theme underscores the dangers of excessive reliance on technology for human survival; a secondary theme—described as "the sin against the body"—criticizes how intellectual and spiritual progress can alienate individuals from their physical being, impairing their capacity to adapt to environmental shifts.
Critical reception
The Machine Stops has been acclaimed as "dystopic and quite brilliant" by Fantasy Book Review, awarding it a perfect score of 10 out of 10 for its powerful depiction of technological terror and its warning about dependence on technology.
In 2020, BBC’s Will Gompertz observed that Forster not only foresaw globalization, the Internet, and video conferencing but also remarkably anticipated aspects of life under COVID-19 lockdowns. Additionally, in 2010, Wired magazine described the story as a haunting forecast of an information society on the brink of collapse, emphasizing its continued significance.
Adaptations
- In 1966, a UK television version directed by Philip Saville was broadcast as part of the science fiction series Out of the Unknown; this episode is among the limited number that still exist from the series.
- BBC Radio 4 aired two adaptations: Gregory Norminton’s radio play in 2001 and a rendition by Philip Franks in 2022.
- Eric Coble’s theatrical adaptation from 2004 was featured on Cleveland’s WCPN 90.3 FM in 2007.
- The graphic novel series TMS: The Machine Stops, scripted by Michael Lent with illustrations by Marc Rene, was released by Alterna Comics in February 2014.
- Neil Duffield’s stage version was showcased at York Theatre Royal during May and June of 2016.
Related works
- The inaugural issue of Mad (Oct–Nov 1952) included "Blobs," a seven-page comic by Wallace Wood portraying two residents of the year one million AD discussing humanity’s transformation into "blobs" dependent on the Machine.
- Stephen Baxter’s short story "Glass Earth Inc.," which directly references "The Machine Stops," appears in his 2003 collection Phase Space.
- Isaac Asimov’s 1957 novel The Naked Sun, part of his Robot series, explores a world where people live apart and communicate solely through holograms and robots, reflecting themes akin to Forster’s narrative.
- The track "The Machine Stops" by Level 42 shares its title with the story and captures sentiments similar to Kuno’s reflections.
- The band A Hope for Home drew inspiration from Forster’s work for their song "The Machine Stops," featured on their album Realis.
- George Lucas’s film THX 1138 (1971) and the novel Logan's Run (1967) by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson present thematic parallels to "The Machine Stops."
- In 2016, space rock group Hawkwind released a concept album entitled The Machine Stops, which was inspired by Forster’s story.
See also
Further reading
- Seegert, Alf (2010), "Technology and the Fleshly Interface in E. M. Forster's 'The Machine Stops'", published in Journal of Ecocriticism 2:1.
- Napier, Susan J. (November 2002), "When the Machines Stop: Fantasy, Reality, and Terminal Identity in Neon Genesis Evangelion and Serial Experiments Lain", appearing in Science Fiction Studies, volume 29, issue 88, pages 418–435.
- Pordzik, Ralph (2010), "Closet fantasies and the future of desire in E. M. Forster's 'The Machine Stops'", featured in English Literature in Transition 1880–1920, volume 53, issue 1, pages 54–74.
- Wally Wood's adaptation for Mad Magazine, 1952
External links
- Collection of Forster’s short fiction available at Standard Ebooks
- Audiobook version of The Machine Stops hosted on LibriVox
- Entry for The Machine Stops on ISFDB
- The eternal moment, and other stories at Project Gutenberg, including The Machine Stops
- Online text of The Machine Stops and Other Stories by E. M. Forster and Rod Mengham via Goodreads