by Kurt Vonnegut
A chilling tale of a future run by
machines
Reviewed by: Alan McClymont
About Alan McClymont
Can you imagine a world where World War Three and the
second industrial revolution have already passed?
Where almost all manufacturing tasks are done by
computer? And where your job is assessed on the basis
of whether a human is needed to complete it? A
society where those who have no skills are forced into
the army or to perform crushingly mundane tasks and
the top scientists and technocrats run society?
Some would say that a world like this is almost upon
us but if you can't imagine it, Kurt Vonnegut can. As
always Vonnegut imagines a future world which is both
terrifying and realistic and as usual he is right more
often than not. Player Piano was Vonnegut's first
novel, written in 1952, and it has proved the test of
time both in written style and prophetic ability.
Dr. Paul Proteus is the most influential man in Ilium,
New York. He is the manager of the Ilium
manufacturing works and he is only 35. It is widely
believed that he will rise to the same heights as his
father did to become the nations National Industrial,
Commercial, Communications, Foodstuffs and Resources
director (a position matched only by the presidency).
Dr. Paul Proteus is also very, very disillusioned and
almost boiling over with rebellion.
There are many within Proteus's society who feel
exactly the same as he does. Those without
opportunity remember when most of them had meaningful
jobs and when they could expect to be promoted if they
worked well. Paul and his colleagues work at
improving technology and as it improves it slowly
replaces each of their jobs with a new computer
program. The stage is set for Edward Finnerty, an old
colleague but one who is very much not part of the
system any more and the explosion is set to happen.
Vonnegut is often described as one of the best sci-fi
writers of all time and I agree. I also think though
that he is probably one of the scariest writers that I
have ever come across. His ideas about the future are
not make believe. He often says in his books, as he
does here, that he believes that this is one of the
paths that the human race could take at the time of
writing. Whether you like to hear about the gloom and
doom facing the world or not you should read this.
It's a fantastically well written story with a well
judged sprinkling of humor and a large a mount of
prophecy which seems to become truer as every year
passes.
Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: Player Piano
Copyright © by Alan McClymont, 2003
Reviewed by Alan McClymont :
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-- Player Piano - by Kurt Vonnegut
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