Player Piano- Symbol or Theme

One of the things that I noticed in the novel was the usage of human beings as objects with which to further themselves or others. Yes, it did happen quite a bit. It seems that as humans become less important in running a society, their purpose dwindles from doing things to being things. There were quite a few instances where this happened.

Firstly, I'll discuss Paul and Bud Calhoun. Yes, I will go as far to say that Paul was using Bud Calhoun, and so was the entire system. Paul would simply go past him every now and then, and demand a new machine. He just took for granted Bud's abilities. He seemed more interested in success in business than what exactly Bud was doing. The system merely cranked out whatever he was thinking up. Eventually, Bud thought up something that put himself out of a job. There was nothing left to do after that. Though he likely walked into that one himself, neither Paul nor the system cared much or did anything to help prevent it or then fix it. They simply took his ideas and cranked them out, kicking more people out of jobs than before. Paul went to Bud indifferently, and when he left, there wasn't much of a large disturbance in Ilium at his dismissal. Even when he boarded the train later, Paul was already thinking of what Bud could do to improve the system, even though an old conductor was sitting beside him. Bud was merely a miracle invention machine.

Next, I'll discuss the reverse of that, and also Finnerty, Lasher, and Luke. The Ghost Shirts decided to use Paul as a figurehead for their operations. He really wasn't anything more than that, and they probably wouldn't mind killing him and thinking up something else. They just figured that this was the easy way out. The great Paul Proteus had become a name on a piece of paper. He was just going to be sitting there as the alleged but hardly the leader of the secret society. Of course, once his purpose was finished, who knows what they'd do with him. As the people began to grow less of an attachment to the machines, they sought to break away, but still saw Paul as merely an item, a tool to fix the overall machine. No better than the society that they just fled. Perhaps that's the proof that the rebellion was doomed to fail.

Anita and Kroner also used Paul quite a bit, the former more so than the latter. Anita saw Paul, without a doubt, as a trophy that would get her into the papers. She just wanted him to do every last little thing she desired, to get her everything she sought. (She more or less sought the world, but still she'd likely have asked Paul for that and then shoot for the moon to boot.) She threw a temper tantrum every time she didn't get her way, and sought to make Paul feel miserable afterwards. Her continual reminding of Pittsburgh is the most notable of her little obsession. Kroner also wanted to use Paul to find the Ghost Shirt society. For someone who was supposed to be a fatherly figure, he really appreciates a little go-for rather than a happy young man. If he could catch the Ghost Shirts, then he would be the friend of a national hero, and doubtless that would have at least three or four (hundred) perks when Paul climbed the success ladder. Such a loving family, pushing the one prodigal son through the fray so they could get a little bit of personal satisfaction. As the closest part of industrial America to Paul, these are most definitely the antagonists and symbols of corruption. Fitting that they would seek glory for themselves.

Also, for a change of pace, Halyard simply used the citizen Edgar Hagstrohm as an exhibit to show the Shah of Bratpuhr. Of course, when the exhibit wasn't as wonderful as planned he simply dragged the tour to another house and made himself at home. To Halyard, the people of America were separate shows to be aired whenever it was necessary to impress foreign visitors. He made no effort to express concern over the opinions or conditions of the families, he simply put them all on display. And, naturally, the show went wrong and the Shah was not impressed all too much. In response, the tour moved to another location; if one show doesn't work, go somewhere else, it's just a cheap show. Doctor Dodge entered with no intention of being friendly, and made it very clear to Edgar that he was only here to impress the Shah when Edgar asked for a handshake. The citizen of America is now no more than something to impress the neighbors with, and they'd better do a good job at it too. Edgar, of course, made effort to show that he wasn't there to just be used. This was important in reminding authority that they were dealing with a living human being. Despite being described as average, it was interesting how wrong the computer was at choosing this person as the best place to advertise to the Shah.

There's an awful lot of person-using-person here. It seems that, especially in the last case above, an automated society comes at the cost of individuality but also at the cost of basic human value. People are not just there to serve a purpose like a computer program. They are important in their own way, and need to be treated as more than just another object to be used as seen fit. Of course, a world run by computers and managers rarely concerns themselves with the importance of human value. All that's important is a bigger number and more progression down a path of educated guesses. The human being becomes nothing more than an obstacle to be manipulated at will.