Please read the following:
-Markowitz, Gerald and Rosner, David, Chapter 1 of Deceit and Denial: The Deadly Politics of Industrial Pollution (2002, 2012).
-Orr, David, "Technological Fundamentalism," Conservation Biology 8 (1994): 335-337. (Both readings available on Blackboard)
And please watch the following:
-Taken for a Ride, directed by Jim Klein (1996, New Day Films). (Available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/p-I8GDklsN4 )
-Modern Times, directed by Charles Chaplin (1936). (Opening scenes)
-Metropolis, directed by Fritz Lang (1927). (Opening scenes)
The advent of the Second Industrial Revolution did not succeed in minimizing the workplace dangers and public health concerns that had become a hallmark of the First Industrial Revolution. In fact, the introduction of increasingly toxic materials into the workplace environment and the greater public sphere served to exacerbate those dangers and concerns. Naturally, critical concerns arouse regarding the impact that these new technological developments were exerting upon daily life and societal development as a whole. Based on the readings by Orr, Markowitz, and Rosner, as well as the film Taken for a Ride and excerpts from the films Modern Times and Metropolis, as well as in-class presentations, please address the following points in a well-written, 300-400 word essay (feel free to exceed that amount if you have more to say):
- According to his essay on technological fundamentalism, why does David Orr believe that technological fundamentalism is dangerous? How do you imagine that Filippo Marinetti would respond to Orr's argument?
- According to the film Taken for a Ride, why did the General Motors corporation systematically engage in efforts to replace public rail transit with public bus and private auto transit? Why did General Motors endeavor to keep their actions hidden from public view?
- Based on the chapter by Gerald Markowitz and David Rosner, why did General Motors (and other industries with which they were associated) maintain that tetraethyl gas posed no public health threat? Why did they instigate legal actions against those who offered evidence of the public danger of tetraethyl gas?
- Opinion question (no right or wrong answer): Were there any scenes from the films Modern Times or Metropolis that reminded you of present-day society? That is to say, did you see any parallels between present-day society and the societies depicted in these two films? If so, please provide examples.