The Machine Stops

The concept of advancement in the story centers on distance from the natural world and reliance on the human body. The people become brains within an underground network. Any bodily dependence is an inconvenience, which highlights the predicament of mortality. The best and brightest minds of humanity are constantly removed from the world unexpectedly by mundane accidents of the body. Although this society has not managed to defeat mortality entirely, it fosters the illusion of power by dictating birth, controlling death through euthanasia, and removing as many dangerous external elements as possible. A carefully-bred person who never leaves their room is unlikely to die in an accident, develop diseases through genetic or environmental factors, or experience violence. Additionally, scientists have mitigated natural disasters—managed to “harness Leviathan” (7)—either by eliminating their occurrence or creating impervious structures.

However, the story warns readers to beware reliance on manmade technology because man is flawed and structures fall. At the end of the story, the people are helpless. The hum of the Machine stops and thousands of people die instantly from shock. Those that survive die flailing in the dark, unable to help themselves and climb to the surface, where they would likely die anyway because they have become unable to breathe outside air.