I read the Penguin Modern Classics version of 'The Machine Stops', which also includes 'The Celestial Omnibus'.
'The Machine Stops' tells the story of an Earth where the everyday needs of human beings are provided for by The Machine, an omnipresent piece of technology. Everyone lives in hexagonal rooms underground, able to summon whatever they need by pushing one of a myriad of buttons on the walls. Humans become more and more reliant on The Machine, becoming lazier and lazier until they rarely leave their cells and value recycled films the over first hand experience of the Earth's surface their ancestors knew so well.
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| 'The Machine Stops' by E. M. Forster (Penguin Modern Classics, 2011) |
Like the very best Ustopian stories, 'The Machine Stops' shows great foresight. I was surprised to find out that it was originally published in 1909. It just goes to show that concerns about our reliance on technology have been around for almost as long as the technology itself.
Although I found the idea interesting, I found the writing a bit plodding. It felt a little like a writing exercise that someone had decided to publish rather than a fully-fledged story, which was a bit of a shame. However, it feels very much like a story ripe for reformation and reinterpretation in other media. The climax could make a great horror film.
The second story, 'The Celestial Omnibus', had an equally dark, but much less plodding style. It tackles literary snobbery by contrasting an enthusiastic young boy taking his first steps into literature with an older man, who reads to show off. In an almost fairy tale style, 'The Celestial Omnibus' tells the story of what happens when the boy investigates a sign pointing 'To Heaven' that seems to point to a dead end alleyway.
I would actually recommend these stories as thought provokers, but think it would be better to read them in other editions including a bit more background information. They've certainly intrigued me enough that I want to try some more Forster, so there's another name to add to the list!
