The Machine Stops

These prompts can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before or after reading the story.

Pre-Reading Warm-Up

What is the purpose of studying history? What about the arts and humanities? How do these subjects differ from topics such as science and engineering? How might history, arts, and the humanities be practical areas of study? How might they not?

Teaching Suggestion: This question connects to the theme of The Study of History and can help students understand how all of these subjects can be practical, but they can also be used to traverse into esoteric territory, creating the academic busy work that occupies Vashti in “The Machine Stops.” After they’ve read the story, students can connect their initial responses to the use of lecture and academia in “The Machine” and consider how this might be a critique of the way academia functioned in Forster’s society.

• Posted by the American Historical Association, this article addresses the question of why we study history beyond the idea of “being doomed to repeat it.” This information can help students understand the broader practical purpose of history to prepare them for the impractical way Vashti studies and lectures on history in the story.

Pre-Reading Warm-Up

What practical, non-spiritual purpose does religion serve in society? How can religion act as “an opiate of the people” as Karl Marx claimed? Why might some governments find it useful as a tool for control?

Teaching Suggestion: Encourage students to think critically about how religion can be used to empower government leaders over a populace expected to follow without question. In “The Machine Stops,” traditional religious beliefs are treated as primitive and obsolete, but the citizens develop a faith and religion surrounding the unseen power of the Machine. When the Machine begins to break down, those in power use and tacitly enforce that religion to maintain order. Additionally, you might explore how Marxist thought connects to ideas of dystopia that stem from issues of capitalism. This connects to the theme Religion and Rules.

• This Cornell Chronicle article explores the connection of Marx’s statement to research data on how religion functions socially.
• This article analyzes “The Machine Stops” through a Marxist lens.

Personal Response Prompt

Vashti is an imperfect character, who is a stubborn product of her society. She does a lot of things in the story that make her unsympathetic. For instance, she distances herself from her son and refuses to acknowledge the Machine’s fallibility. Vashti prefers to forego autonomy and turn a blind eye to anything that discredits the Machine to ensure her own comfort and stable worldview. When was a moment in your life when you either found yourself doing the same thing or you observed this in someone else? When and why did you change your mind? Considering your own experience, is Vashti a character who is worthy of sympathy? Is she frustrating? How do you think you would be similar or different from her if you were raised in the setting of “The Machine”?

Teaching Suggestion: Forster tells the story from Vashti’s perspective, a useful technique for demonstrating the manipulative effects of the Machine and those who run it. It’s helpful to understand how social influences shape us and how it’s often much simpler to suffer and adapt than to fight for change. Vashti can be a frustrating character, and most people would prefer to see themselves in Kuno—the one who thinks outside of the Machine and asserts his own humanity. For students, considering the moments in which they opted for comfort like Vashti can clarify Forster’s warning about how easily a populace can be led. You might have a class discussion in which students talk about nature vs. nurture and consider whether Vashti shares any culpability in perpetuating the system.