One-Dimensional Man

The mental hospital of Herbert Marcuses book, One-dimensional Man, deputes us the problem that a democratic orderliness creates. Though this book was written covert in 1964, many tail train that what he says is true in todays ball club. incompatible scenarios argon withal brought up to show us how things will be affected due to the advancements of technology. Marcuse wants us to nail what will happen and what has happened to cabaret through a series of changes. Marcuse talked a lot about the necessities and luxuries of life. He called these the true needs and the restrictive needs. He makes it a point to show us that the changes in society cause us to think differently. close to plenty are beginning to mis sweep upn the true needs with the restrictive needs. Instead of actually spending their m atomic number 53y on things they need for themselves or their families, they splurge. Marcuse believes this to be due to the advancement of technology. Marcuse also believes t hat the media, in all its forms, cultivate what the individual believes to be true needs. Through social media, we are convinced(p) that we must have several(prenominal)thing, therefore we go out and get what we want.All of the advertisements that you see are purposely developed so that you would want the product. With this the individual is blind by what is truly indispens competent and what is wanted. Marcuse compares this kind of behavior to a disease. He states that the individual indulges on these products so that they may satisfy their happiness within. merely Marcuse says that this happiness is not a condition which has to be maintained (5). Instead, it is temporal and will go away once this person has satisfied their need. then(prenominal) what is left is euphoria in unhappiness (5).Marcuse believes that an individual indulges in these repressive needs because they want equation. Buying these products commit them a sense of equality to others in society. Marcuse bel ieves that they are blinded by these products so a lot that they dont plane care about true needs anymore. They would quite an have a big screen TV kindred their gaffer has rather than having health insurance. Marcuse says Mass production and atomic reactor distri yetion championship the undecomposed(a) individual, and industrial psychology has long since ceased to be confined to the milling workry (10).Anything that can be found within a household is mass produced. Most of which are machines that are used to help make fooling life easier. Society has twist so accustom to having accepted gadgets virtually that some mess dont even get along how to fulfill simple tasks. Being able to mass produce an item is effective in itself, scarce being able to distribute that product to an entire nation or even several nations is something else. This creates the potential of having the entire cosmos depending on one company for a particular product. Technology has become just another part of everyones life.Technology is constantly advancing and naked as a jaybird products are always invented to help the daily routine of life, easier. Some examples of how certain inventions make life easier are the car, computer and internet. Being able to plump twice the distance in half the time makes the task of passing play to work and tending to your family much easier. Being able to send individual a document with a click of the mouse or even keeping in touch with family or friends that live far away. Since the hands mainly consists of machines creating everything, people have begun to find things to do with their free time.Having actual free time to do things with the family or friends or even oneself is startle to become common according to Marcuse. Marcuse clearly states that technology has taken everyplace the entire work force. Marcuse states The very structure of humans existence would be altered the individual would be liberated from the work worlds. (2). By this he wants us to translate that humans will shortly be replaced by technology. There would be no need for people to be around factories anymore because everything can be done much faster and much more efficient with machines.This is the type of society that we are heading into. This is all due to the people that take in these factories. The uses of machines have turn up to be much more efficient and much more productive. world just cant perform certain tasks that are essential to mass produce products. They just may be able to but the quality of the work wouldnt compare to that of a machines work. Today political power asserts itself through its power over machine process and over the technical organization. (3). We can all agree that this statement hush holds true today.The executive decisions, which are made in todays society, are all made by those who own major companies or corporations. They have the most(prenominal) power because they have the most money. Their factories are mainly machines that create their product. Though they still require some manpower to run their system, they mainly rely on their machines, These select a couple of(prenominal) people utilize the full potential use of technical, scientific and mechanized productivity (3). Marcuse makes a good point in saying stinting freedom would mean freedom from the economy (4).Those who have utilized the full potential of machines have already found their freedom from the economy. Everyone else is struggling to master freedom from the economy, making just enough money to support their families. We know these people as the middle class or the working class. Their jobs give them a decent amount of money to live comfortable lives. In this passage, Marcuse talks about how liberty can become something that is used for dogmatic the masses. The ability to be able to elect ones leader doesnt of necessity mean that the political sympathies isnt in control.The judicature is alw ays freeing to have some type of influence on everything that is put on the media. For example, if the government isnt influencing the media, why is there censorship? The truth is that the government controls most aspects of our life. Marcuse argues that the right of freedom of speech is good yet it also creates the right for censorship. Marcuse believes that the purpose of technology is to help us live easier lives. Assisting us with jobs that humans just dont have the strength for should be the true intention of a machine. A machine is supposed to take the job of several humans.It is there to perform tasks that a normal human does not have the strength or ability to do. Instead, the capitalist government is using machines to increase their power and wealth. Instead of using technology advances as something to help the people, they instead use it to oppress the people with weapons and propaganda. Being able to determine ones leader may sound like an thought processl but Marcuse m ay disagree. He states that this system is not perfect. The idea of having a free trade system allows the government to publish people with trade sanctions.Going between countries would require one to meet all of these rules in order to proceed with the transaction. Sanctions for one country may be all different from a neighboring country. These sanctions would not have existed before but must still be enforced. Even though this was written back in the mid 1960s, we can see that some of what Marcuse says is true in todays society. Though the change process was gradual, there were still significant changes that we can see. The advancement in technology is one lynchpin factor in the gradual changes that we see.Everything has technology integrated into it in one way or another. Because of this people began to lose sight of what was truly needed in life to survive and live. Instead, people have been blinded by things that they want and work until they have actually gotten what they wa nted. They have fed their starve for materialistic things for the time being but will soon realize that this hunger will eventually fade away. The government also influences the society through media. Censorship is a method in which the government influences the media.