Machinal and Modern Times

I noticed a bunch of similarities between Machinal and the film Modern Times. The both seem to focus on main characters that are driven insane by the routine, machine like world that they live in. I think that this could be saying something about how doing what society tells you to do and blindly following the status quo turns us into something that we don’t want to be. They both also use a sense of sped up time in which the stories are told, which give both of the stories a fast paced feel. I think that they both do this to show the instant gratification and fast paced nature of modern society. I do think that Machinal does a better job of showing how machines and industry change the way people interact with each other and view the world, because in the play all of the characters, except “young woman,” seem to value order and structure over things like love and compassion. Take, for example, how the mother, Mr. J, and all of the other office workers expect the young woman to marry Mr. J simply because societal norms say so, and regardless of whether or not they love each other.