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Es muss ein Mensch an der Maschine sein
I remembered John Crowley agreeing with H.G. Wells that the futurism of Metropolis (1927) is no such thing:
Wells notes—it's hard to miss and I thought it was the silliest thing in the movie when I first saw it—that the workers are slaves to machines, like the poor guy who actually has to manually control a clock that somehow controls the works. Did Lang not understand that the machines are designed to replace human drudgery, because machines are so much better at it? The social dislocations caused by that replacement are real, but no modern industrial society can be built on bare-faced slavery.
Leaving aside the fact that, actually, I think the U.S. is doing its best right now to disprove both Wells and Crowley and bear out Lang, I disagree completely that the image of the worker crucified on the clock is silly. Of course it's not literally how industrialization works, but as a metaphor it cuts to the bone. If anything, it's sharper in these days of the so-called gig economy. Got five minutes free? Great, that's another job you could be picking up. Already working nine to five? Relax, here's a service that never sleeps. Just chip in at your leisure, except the work won't pay so well that leisure is exactly an option. Everything that makes space in your life, makes space for more work. You're flexible and independent. You're always on the clock. Keep those hands moving. You've got the time.
Wells notes—it's hard to miss and I thought it was the silliest thing in the movie when I first saw it—that the workers are slaves to machines, like the poor guy who actually has to manually control a clock that somehow controls the works. Did Lang not understand that the machines are designed to replace human drudgery, because machines are so much better at it? The social dislocations caused by that replacement are real, but no modern industrial society can be built on bare-faced slavery.
Leaving aside the fact that, actually, I think the U.S. is doing its best right now to disprove both Wells and Crowley and bear out Lang, I disagree completely that the image of the worker crucified on the clock is silly. Of course it's not literally how industrialization works, but as a metaphor it cuts to the bone. If anything, it's sharper in these days of the so-called gig economy. Got five minutes free? Great, that's another job you could be picking up. Already working nine to five? Relax, here's a service that never sleeps. Just chip in at your leisure, except the work won't pay so well that leisure is exactly an option. Everything that makes space in your life, makes space for more work. You're flexible and independent. You're always on the clock. Keep those hands moving. You've got the time.
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The one thing I don't miss is how I was an insomniac and my bedroom was right over a neighbours' bedroom and so my parents forbade me to type at night for years. Doesn't matter with a computer.
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I can sympathize with both the typist and the insomniac in this scenario. I remember the hum of the Selectric and the clacking of its keys. I remember the bass coming down through the ceiling earlier this evening as the upstairs neighbors listened to something that must have been music.