Zoe Marin

216398919

Professor Tanya Taylor

EN 2172

25 February 2022

E.M. Forster’s “The Machine Stops” as Apocalyptic Science Fiction

Originally published in 1909, “The Machine Stops” became a pioneer of apocalyptic

science-fiction (ASF), a sub-genre combining science fiction (SF) and Apocalyptic Literature

(AL). SF is a genre that “hypothesizes” a fictional future based on scientific reasoning (Suvin

374). AL comes from the Judeo-Christian bible, specifically the prophetic writing of “The Book

of Revelation”. Because the apocalypse has not happened yet, and one can only speculate on the

future of mankind, all AL is automatically ASF. Since the time of the Old Testament, there have

been various works of ASF including E.M. Forster’s “The Machine Stops”. This famous short

story presents a world in which humans rely on a massive “Machine” to survive underground

after the Earth’s surface has become inhabitable. Forster focuses on the characters of Kuno, a

rebel who mistrusts the Machine, and his mother, Vashti, who worships it. Despite the

widespread trust in the Machine, it ultimately fails, resulting in the demise of all the humans

living underground. Through his story, Forster explores the dangers of human dependence on

technology. Therefore, “The Machine Stops” is most properly understood as a work of the

apocalyptic science fiction subgenre due to E.M. Forster's references to the biblical utopia/

anti-utopia, his use of “cognitive estrangement”, and of course, his portrayal of an apocalyptic

event caused by current human behavior.

Forster makes it clear that “The Machine Stops” is a work of ASF through his references

to the biblical portrayals of utopia/anti-utopia in the Book of Revelation. The Book of Revelation
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describes two possible outcomes for humans when the apocalypse comes: 1) Worship God, and

reside in the “new Jerusalem” where “there will be no more death, sadness, crying, or pain,

because all the old ways are gone”, or 2) Be a sinner, and be sent to the “lake of fire” (a.k.a. Hell)

(Revelation 21: 2-4, 20:15). This biblical concept of utopia/anti-utopia is an essential aspect of

SF. In “On the Poetics of the Science Fiction Genre”, Darko Suvin states that SF “has always

been wedded to a hope of finding in the unknown the ideal environment, tribe, state, intelligence

or other aspect of the Supreme Good (or to a fear of and revulsion from its contrary)”(Suvin

374). Since most SF is secular, the genre often presents a man-made utopia, as well as its

“contrary” (E.g.: “The Community” (utopia) and “Elsewhere” in The Giver). In “The Machine

Stops”, there are two possible outcomes for humans: 1) Live safely underground, protected by

the Machine, or 2) Be punished with “homelessness”, forced to return to the Earth’s surface

resulting in death. Forster also creates direct parallels to AL by religionizing the Machine. Many

people “worship the Book of the Machine”, and believe “the Machine is omnipotent,eternal;

blessed is the machine”; this is why devout believers in the Machine like Vashti are protected

while rebels like Kuno are threatened with expulsion (Forster 16).

Furthermore, Kuno’s “cognitive estrangement” in regards to the world of the Machine

enables him to be a prophetic character, further establishing the ASF subgenre of “The Machine

Stops”. Within AL, John is the speaker in the Book of Revelation who uses his visions from God

to warn society about humanity’s imminent doom. In “The Machine Stops”, Kuno takes on the

role of the prophet, tasked with warning Vashti about the Machine’s imminent doom. However,

rather than experiencing a prophetic vision from God, in the context of apocalyptic science

fiction, he experiences “cognitive estrangement” which Suvin describes as the main defining

feature of SF (Suvin 372). As mentioned previously, SF presents a fictional world based on

scientifically plausible, future realities. “The Machine Stops” presents a world where the current
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(meaning 1909) technology has progressed to a point that humans rely on it and worship it

completely. Although this is the new norm, cognitive estrangement happens when a character

questions and recognizes the strangeness in this new reality (Suvin 374). From their first

conversation, it is clear that Kuno does not experience his mother’s faith in the Machine, stating:

“You talk as if a god had made a Machine” and describing it as “wearisome” (Forster 2). After

several conversations with Vashti and an illegal journey to the surface of the Earth, Kuno finally

states his prophecy: “The Machine stops… The Machine is stopping”. Despite not having any

solid proof, through Kuno’s cognitive estrangement, he can act as the prophet figure who

predicts the Machine’s demise.

Finally, Forster perfectly exemplifies the ASF subgenre by critiquing real-life human

behavior through a fictional apocalyptic event. From a modern perspective, “The Machine

Stops” does not seem that strange since, in 2022, there is a lot of discourse regarding technology

and human isolation. However, even in 1909, Forster began to sense a new reliance on

technology and feared that “machines would take over the world” (Long 1). Although Kuno is

the literary prophet, Forster acts as a meta-prophet by presenting his own worst fears as a

warning call to society. Suvin explains how “SF sees the norms of any age, including

empathetically its own, as unique, changeable, and therefore subject to cognitive glance” (Suvin

375). By presenting the worst-case scenario for humanity’s relationship to technology, Forster

emphasizes how preventable the apocalypse is. The Machine’s demise is not a sudden event; in

fact, the entire story highlights the various times Kuno tries to warn Vashti about the dangers of

her obsession with the Machine as well as his prophecy that “the Machine is stopping”. Shortly

after, Vashti and her friends experience a series of defects with the Machine that they eventually

ignore. Forster states, “The defects had not been remedied, but the human tissues in the latter day

had become so subservient, that they readily adapted themselves to every caprice in the
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Machine” (Forster 18). Within this worst-case scenario, humans have become so dependent on

technology they see it as infallible and omnipotent like a god. In the end, these subterranean

humans only lose faith in the Machine when its failure leads to their extinction. Through this

tragedy, Kuno now knows that “Humanity learnt its lesson” (Forster 21).

In conclusion, through E.M. Forster’s references to the biblical utopia/ anti-utopia, his

use of “cognitive estrangement”, and his portrayal of an apocalyptic event caused by human

behavior, it is clear that “The Machine Stops” is a work of apocalyptic science fiction. To further

analyze this classification, one can look at two external texts: “The Book of Revelation” and

Darko Suvin’s “On the Poetics of the Science Fiction Genre”. The Book of Revelation acts as a

guideline on what to look for in “The Machine Stops”, such as the concept of utopia/anti-utopia

as seen through new Jerusalem and Hell in the Bible, as well as Subterranean Earth and

“Homelessness” in “The Machine Stops”. Suvin explains that this search for a utopia and fear of

the anti-utopia is an essential part of SF. Furthermore, Suvin’s focus is on the concept of

“cognitive estrangement”, in which a character recognizes a strangeness in the fictional world

they live in. While the rest of society worships the Machine, Kuno warns Vashti about the

Machine’s failure- acting as the prophet-figure common in AL. Finally, an important element of

ASF is the use of fictional scenarios to warn against real-life human behavior. Since Forster was

concerned with the human reliance on technology, he uses “The Machine Stops” to present a

catastrophe that could happen if current behavior goes unchecked. Although the extremities of

the scenario in “The Machine Stops” appeared far-fetched to an early 20th-century audience, the

themes of technology and human isolation continue to be relevant in the 21st century.
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Works Cited

Forster, E.M. The Machine Stops ... E.M. Forster. 1909,

http://archive.ncsa.illinois.edu/prajlich/forster.html.

Long, Chris. “The Machine Stops: Did Em Forster Predict the Internet Age?” BBC News, BBC,

18 May 2016, https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-36289890.

Suvin, Darko. “On the Poetics of the Science Fiction Genre.” College English, vol. 34, no. 3,

National Council of Teachers of English, 1972, pp. 372–82,

https://doi.org/10.2307/375141.