The Machine Stops

by

E.M. Forster

The Lecturer Character Analysis

The lecturer on the French Revolution serves as a mouthpiece for the official ideology of the society in “The Machine Stops.” When respirators are abolished, making it impossible for people to visit Earth’s surface and observe it directly, he celebrates this change, giving a speech explaining why “tenth-hand” knowledge, filtered through a multitude of secondary interpretations, is truer than first-hand knowledge. When defects appear in the Machine, he counsels an attitude of patient suffering, to put up with the Machine’s flaws and have faith that they will soon be fixed, as the Machine has provided so much for them in the past. In this way, the lecturer is the direct opposite of Kuno, who questions the official ideology of his society. The lecturer instead preaches an attitude of blind faith and willful ignorance—an attitude that will eventually mark the downfall of this civilization.
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The Lecturer Character Timeline in The Machine Stops

The timeline below shows where the character The Lecturer appears in The Machine Stops. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 3: The Homeless
Technology vs. Nature Theme Icon
Simulation vs. Experience Theme Icon
Emotion vs. Rationality Theme Icon
...Earth’s surface for no reason but simple curiosity to be unnecessary, even “improper.” Only some lecturers complain about the change, because they are no longer able to obtain first-hand experience of... (full context)
Technology vs. Nature Theme Icon
Religion and Faith Theme Icon
...the Mending Apparatus admits that the Mending Apparatus is itself in need of repair. The lecturer from earlier gives a speech exhorting people to be patient and make sacrifices while the... (full context)