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Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity
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About This Book
"England's greatest living writer" (unHerd) examines the technological, historical, and--above all--spiritual currents driving the global industrial economy and prophesies what's next for a dead civilization.In Against the Machine, Kingsnorth recounts how the Machine, a combination of technological, political, economic, and spiritual forces, is destroying the life support systems of the Earth itself. He examines the Machine's way of homogenising the mosaic of human cultures and using humans as fodder in a techno-industrial juggernaut. Most importantly, he identifies how this "progress" and its ideologies put humanity in a headlong plunge towards what looks to be a glorified nihilism disguised as "freedom."In the age of the Machine, it takes effort to remain truly human. Drawing on deep readings of philosophers, poets, and mystics like Ivan Illich, Wendell Berry, and Simone Weil, Kingsnorth reminds us what humanity a healthy suspicion of entrenched power; connection to land, nature and heritage; a deep attention to matters of the spirit; heterodox tolerance, freedom of expression and an appreciation of beauty. Against the Machine is the spiritual manual for Kingsnorth's fellow madmen.
Reviews
"It is valuable because he sees with uncommon clarity that not only nature, but human nature, is being redefined by an anti-limit culture, economic system, and technology sector that treat minds, bodies, and environments as ripe for plundering and optimization in the name of progress ..."
"The lure, and the hazard, of Kingsnorth's position [is]...it tends toward the absolute ..."
"A spirited—sometimes too spirited—critique of the empty suit that is late capitalism and its trappings ..."
"How can we use technology to serve human- and Creation-affirming ends?"
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