Manhattan Transfer · Concept
Modernity and Technology
The novel emphasizes the impact of modern technology—skyscrapers, subways, ferries, telephones, and cars—as both awe-inspiring and oppressive, shaping human experience and accelerating the pace of life.
The novel emphasizes the impact of modern technology—skyscrapers, subways, ferries, telephones, and cars—as both awe-inspiring and oppressive, shaping human experience and accelerating the pace of life.
The skyscraper, dirigible, and advertisements represent modern urban life, while Jimmy's hallucinatory experience of the city's mechanical and commercial rhythms highlights technology's impact.
Modernity and Technology is one of the patterns Manhattan Transfer by John Dos Passos returns to. The chapter notes above are from this edition’s companions — open those chapters to see how the book stages the idea rather than treating the theme as a slogan.