Modernism and the Machine

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES: MODERNISM AND THE MACHINE A dissertation submitted by Amy Woodbury Tease in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English TUFTS UNIVERSITY May 2011 ©2011, Amy Woodbury Tease Advisor: Lee Edelman ii Abstract Technical Difficulties: Modernism and the Machine This dissertation explores the boundaries between technology and the ideology of the human in the twentieth- and twenty-first-centuries. As a movement that motivates theoretical interventions such as Walter Benjamin‘s ―The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction,‖ Theodor W. Adorno‘s The Culture Industry, and Mark Seltzer‘s Bodies and Machines, modernism exhibits a pervasive anxiety about the status of the human in relation to technology. Examining this relationship through multiple theoretical frameworks, I argue that modernism is marked by technical difficulties: moments of rupture and dissonance that disrupt and fragment narratives, produce interference over communications lines, and reconfigure time and space. Casting my reading across generic, temporal, and geographical boundaries, I read the Professor in Joseph Conrad‘s The Secret Agent (1907) as a figure that troubles the man/machine binary by operating on the brink of what Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari call ―becoming machine‖; put Samuel Beckett‘s play Krapp’s Last Tape (1958) into conversation with Kazuo Ishiguro‘s novel Never Let Me Go (2005) as they challenge the modernist ideology of the human through narratives that privilege the recorded voice or copy; examine the telephone in Muriel Spark‘s Memento Mori (1959) and The Girls of Slender Means (1963) as an insecure and antagonistic medium of communication that articulates a global tension around the threat of surveillance in the postwar era; bring Samuel Beckett‘s experimental iii short, Film (1959), to bear on Michael Haneke‘s Caché (2005) as they construct a theory of perception as always already paranoid; and consider modernism‘s role in the shaping of postmodern network culture through James Joyce, whose literary and critical oeuvre anticipates the generative effects of technology in the digital age. Together, the texts in this dissertation reveal modernism‘s preoccupation with media that are inherently unstable, that breed discomfort through disembodiment, and that produce institutionalized methods of control. Through their investment in the technical difficulties that expose the fantasy of security, closure, and connection and that reveal the cracks in our humanist frameworks, these texts consider the effects of the human engagement with the machine and call for a reexamination of assumptions about how technology functions as a producer of knowledge and a recorder of individual and collective histories. iv This dissertation is dedicated to Joseph A. Walsh, who believed that dreams really do come true. ―Right-O, Poppy.‖ v Acknowledgments I am honored to have had the opportunity to work on this project with scholars and colleagues whose pedagogy I respect and whose scholarship I so greatly admire. First, I would like to thank my dissertation advisor Lee Edelman, an outstanding scholar and mentor who has enriched my intellectual and professional growth through his rigorous attention to my work and encouragement of my professional development. Lee‘s generous advice and support at every stage of my graduate career has been invaluable and his insightful feedback on this project in particular challenged me to push my ideas beyond their perceived limits and inspired me to produce my strongest work. I am also fortunate to have had worked with an incredible committee of dedicated scholars throughout this process. I want to thank Joseph Litvak, Sonia Hofkosh, and Rebecca L. Walkowitz for devoting their valuable time and energy to brainstorming with me and for providing thoughtful feedback on my drafts. Their critical engagement with my work during my dissertation defense has helped me to envision an exciting future for the project. I am especially grateful to Rebecca, who accepted the invitation to join my committee in the very early stages of the project‘s development and who has since gone above and beyond her role as an outside reader to become a trusted mentor. Rebecca‘s guidance over the past three years has motivated me to take my work in new directions and her continued support of my professional development is deeply appreciated. Over the past eight years, I have been privileged to be part of an extremely supportive intellectual community at Tufts University. Through this network, I have been introduced to some truly remarkable women who are not only destined to be stars in their chosen fields, but who have also proven to be loyal friends. First, I want to thank Kristina Aikens and Meg Toth for adopting me when I was a young and intimidated Master‘s student and for giving me the strength and the courage to develop my own critical voice. Their advice on everything from coursework to teaching and writing strategies has made me a better teacher and scholar and their brilliant and unique insights over the course of this project have helped to give it a shape and a force that I could not have imagined on my own. I want to extend a very special thanks to Kristina in particular for her support over the final stretch: I leaned on her more than I probably should have and she embraced it with an open heart, getting me out of my head by taking me away from my desk and making me laugh when I needed it the most. Kristina inspires me every single day and there are not enough words to tell her just how much I admire her as a teacher, a scholar, and a friend. I also wish to thank Cynthia Williams, my partner in everything TEGO- related, my library buddy, and faithful confidant, for helping me to stay grounded and focused and for teaching me the value of patience, both in work and in friendship. Warm thanks also go to Brianna Burke, who I can always count on to ―cut the fat‖, who challenges me to be a better writer by asking the tough questions, and whose determination and perseverance has been a source of strength and encouragement. And to Ashley Shelden, whose advice on all things anxiety-producing has kept my digestive system running smoothly on the inside. vi Finally, I thank Lauren Byler, Nicole Flynn, Jennifer London, Anne Moore, and Lecia Rosenthal for their generous contributions to this project. With the support of these smart and talented women, I have gained confidence in myself and in my work. I value every moment I have shared with them and look forward to working alongside them for many years to come. And now…my thanks to my family. I want to thank Cousin Jerry Kiernan for his positive reinforcement. As someone who has been through the dissertation process himself, Jerry seemed to intuit when I needed a little push to motivate me towards the finish line. I also want to thank Arnold and Ellen Woodbury (―a bushel and a peck‖); Kathy, Joe, Katie, and Joey Riley; Jonah Stuart; Mark and Linda Tease; and Ethan and Kate Tease for believing in me and for making my world a brighter place just by being in it. I thank Paul and Mary Ellen Stanton for always checking in, for keeping me well fed, and for opening their hearts and home to me all of these years. During the writing of this dissertation, I lost two very special people in my life—my grandparents, Joseph and Margaret Walsh—who always encouraged me to dream big. My memories of them continue to inspire me and I thank them for all the love they have given me. Of course, I never would have made it this far without the support of ―the originals‖. My sister, Meaghan, is my best friend: her calming presence and late- night pep-talks have helped me to channel positive energy and I cannot thank her enough for her willingness to listen to me talk...and talk…and talk. Meg‘s generosity and dedication to her work and to our family is remarkable and she has taught me to follow my heart by always following hers. My parents, Vincent and Susan Woodbury, have shown me nothing but love and support. I want to thank my father for passing down the ―night owl‖ gene that has allowed me to function on very little sleep; for knowing when I need a hug and when I need a ―head- butt‖; and for introducing me to music that has provided a healthy escape from everyday stress. My dad also provided valuable insight (yes, seriously) into my research on the telephone and for that I say: Thank you, Mr. President. Ever since I was a little girl, I have aspired to be the kind of woman that my mother is: kind, nurturing, thoughtful, intelligent, quick-witted, ambitious, quirky in all the right ways, and devoted to everything and everyone that gives her life meaning. My mom has taught me the value of hard work and demonstrated, through her teaching and service, the tremendous impact that an educator can have on her community. I only hope that I can inspire others the way she has inspired me. My husband Justin deserves special recognition for all he has done to keep me sane and for standing beside me through the best and the worst of times. I thank him for the hugs, the tissues, the nature walks, the cards, for giving up precious hours of sleep to read my work or listen to me talk, for teaching me how to laugh at myself while also taking me seriously, and for showing me how beautiful the world can be when we allow ourselves to see it.

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