Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Flivver King, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Capitalism and Dehumanization
American Idealism and Disillusionment
Misinformation, Media Bias, and Ignorance
Individualism vs. Unionization
Technology and Progress
Summary
Analysis
Another well-known American magnate, King C. Gillette, also dreams about working through some of the world’s problems and creating more equality. Gillette tries to talk with Ford about solving some of these problems, but Ford remains a staunch individualist who believes that most of America’s institutions, like the post office or public schools, should be privatized to avoid waste. Gillette is frustrated and tries to argue that the capitalist system also creates a huge amount of waste and that competition can quickly devolve into madness, because overproduction can leave millions out of work.
Ford’s comparison with Gillette, the razor magnate, illuminates how Ford has fallen sharply as an idealist. While Gillette dreams of producing greater equality and opportunity, Ford has become completely invested in the capitalist system because of the benefits that it has afforded him, and he refuses to see its limits or how it can be adjusted and improved. Gillette’s references to overproduction also hint at the impending Great Depression.
Themes
