"All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace"

In “All Watched Over By Machines of Loving Grace,” Richard Brautigan is suggesting that, eventually, technology can replace man. He is anticipating the inventions to come, and feels that technology will one day take over. In the poem, nature is at ease and “mammals and computers live together in mutually programming harmony,” hinting that there is no longer a need for humans or their labor. I took this as a warning, saying that as computers and technology become more advanced and integrate into our lives, we have to be wary of letting them take over our lives.

Living in the age we do now, we all know just how simple it is to let your life be run by gadgets and computers, and I believe that the writer is anticipating this and trying to “save” future generations from making the mistakes he is just beginning to see.

This poem can indeed be viewed as anti-technology, for the reasons I previously stated and many more, but one could also read into it as taking a pro-technology stand. The images create a utopia of sorts between nature and technology, which can signify a very constructive relationship between man and machinery. It seems as if it is the kind of relationship people dream of when new technology comes about. They do not feel that computers will eliminate their purpose entirely, but instead that they will become their “friends” or allies, there to aid them and collaborate with.

Personally, I see this poem’s message to be one of anti-technology. All of the images describing a “cybernetic ecology where we are free of labors” convinced me that this was not so much people and animals living in harmony with technology, but instead computers taking over completely. It is easy to believe, based on the beginning of the poem that the world has become a cybernetic paradise, nature and inventions cooperating with one another, but as you read on you see that humans are rid of labor. A world in which human beings have no purpose does not seem like a world I, nor anyone else, should want to be a part of. Therefore, I perceived this poem to be a forewarning of the dangers technology can be capable of.