--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man is about to be deprived of a great…" description: "\"Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work routine. The nightmare of capitalist society is unemployment; the nightmare of cybernetic society wi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png" --- # Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work… ![“Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work routine. The nightmare of capitalist society is unemployment; the nightmare of cybernetic society will be employment.” quote by John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png) > “Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work routine. The nightmare of capitalist society is unemployment; the nightmare of cybernetic society will be employment.” [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns that both unemployment in capitalism and forced employment in cybernetic societies are dystopian outcomes. **In simple terms:** Both systems can trap people in undesirable work conditions. Key Takeaway Seek balance between meaningful work and autonomy. Themes work economy technology freedom automation Mood anxious critical thoughtful Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - career planning - policy making - personal development - education - entrepreneurship Key Concepts capitalism cybernetics labor theory social critique Questions to Reflect On - How can we design work that preserves dignity? - What policies can mitigate both unemployment and forced labor? A Different Perspective It assumes a binary view of future societies, ignoring hybrid possibilities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Capitalist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalist/) [Capitalist Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalist-society/) [Deprived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprived/) [Employment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/employment/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nightmare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightmare/) [Nightmare Capitalist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightmare-capitalist-1892570/) [Pole Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pole-work-1892572/) [Routine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/routine/) [Unemployment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unemployment/) [Unemployment Nightmare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unemployment-nightmare-1892571/) ## Related quotes > [In the capitalist society there is a place and bread for all. Its ability to expand provides sustenance for every worker. Permanent unemployment is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/in-the-capitalist-society-there-is-a-place-and-bread-for-all-its/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Real liberty can exist only where exploitation has been abolished, where there is no oppression of some by others, where there is no unemployment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-stalin-2/real-liberty-can-exist-only-where-exploitation-has-been-abolished/) [J. Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-stalin-2/) > [“waste is the highest virtue one can achieve in an advanced capitalist society”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/waste-is-the-highest-virtue-one-can-achieve-in-an-advanced-capitalist/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Prison, with its daily rhythm, with the transfer and the defense, does not leave any time; prison dissolves time: This is the principal form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-negri/prison-with-its-daily-rhythm-with-the-transfer-and-the-defense-does/) [Antonio Negri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-negri/) > [The restoration of property would be a complicated, arduous and presumably a lengthy business; the transformation of a Capitalist Society into a Communist one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaire-belloc/the-restoration-of-property-would-be-a-complicated-arduous-and/) [Hilaire Belloc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaire-belloc/) > [The economic anarchy of capitalist society as it exists today is, in my opinion, the real source of evil. .. Communities tend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-economic-anarchy-of-capitalist-society-as-it-exists-today-is-in-2/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Intellectuals feel they are the most valuable people, the ones with the highest merit, and that society should reward people in accordance with their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-nozick/intellectuals-feel-they-are-the-most-valuable-people-the-ones-with/) [Robert Nozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-nozick/) > [The economic anarchy of capitalist society as it exists today is, in my opinion, the real source of evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-economic-anarchy-of-capitalist-society-as-it-exists-today-is-in/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [ Surely, nothing can be more plain or even more trite common sense than the proposition that innovation \[...\] is at the center of practically… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-a-schumpeter/surely-nothing-can-be-more-plain-or-even-more-trite-common-sense-than/) [Joseph A. Schumpeter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-a-schumpeter/) > [Freedom in capitalist society always remains about the same as it was in ancient Greek republics: Freedom for slave owners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/freedom-in-capitalist-society-always-remains-about-the-same-as-it-was/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [This capitalist society has not lasted forever; it's only a few hundred years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/this-capitalist-society-has-not-lasted-forever-it-s-only-a-few/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [It is obvious, moreover, that the formation of price in capitalist society must differ from the formation of price in social conditions based upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-hiferding/it-is-obvious-moreover-that-the-formation-of-price-in-capitalist/) [Rudolf Hiferding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-hiferding/) > [We live in a predatory capitalist society in which everything is for sale. Everybody is for sale, so there is ubiquitous commodification - be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/we-live-in-a-predatory-capitalist-society-in-which-everything-is-for/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [While we still live in a capitalist society, we of course will fight for whatever reforms help make life better for working people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kshama-sawant/while-we-still-live-in-a-capitalist-society-we-of-course-will-fight/) [Kshama Sawant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kshama-sawant/) > [... in a capitalist society a man is expected to be an aggressive, uncompromising, factual, lusty, intelligent provider of goods,and the woman, a retiring,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/in-a-capitalist-society-a-man-is-expected-to-be-an-aggressive/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) ## More by John Fowles > [I am infinitely strange to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-am-infinitely-strange-to-myself/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [I do not plan my fiction any more than I normally plan woodland walks; I follow the path that seems most promising at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-do-not-plan-my-fiction-any-more-than-i-normally-plan-woodland-walks/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“The sky is absolutely empty. Beautifully pure and empty. As if the architects and builders would live in all the houses they built! Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-sky-is-absolutely-empty-beautifully-pure-and-empty-as-if-the/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“The evolution of human mentality has put us all in vitro now, behind the glass wall of our own ingenuity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-evolution-of-human-mentality-has-put-us-all-in-vitro-now-behind/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [Most marriages recognize this paradox: Passion destroys passion; we want what puts an end to wanting what we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/most-marriages-recognize-this-paradox-passion-destroys-passion-we/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [That is the great distinction between the sexes. Men see objects, women see the relationships between objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/that-is-the-great-distinction-between-the-sexes-men-see-objects-women/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [The craving to risk death is our last great perversion. We come from night, we go into night. Why live in night?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-craving-to-risk-death-is-our-last-great-perversion-we-come-from/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [There is only one good definition of God: the freedom that allows other freedoms to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/there-is-only-one-good-definition-of-god-the-freedom-that-allows/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [They looked down on her; and she looked up through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/they-looked-down-on-her-and-she-looked-up-through-them/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Long afterwards I realized why some men, racing drivers and their like, become addicted to speed. There are those of us who never see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/long-afterwards-i-realized-why-some-men-racing-drivers-and-their-like/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [The best wines take the longest to mature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-best-wines-take-the-longest-to-mature/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [But however good you get at translating personality into line or paint it's no go if your personality isn't worth translating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/but-however-good-you-get-at-translating-personality-into-line-or/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Liking other people is an illusion we have to cherish in ourselves if we are to live in society. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/liking-other-people-is-an-illusion-we-have-to-cherish-in-ourselves-if/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [Do you know that every great thing in the history of art and every beautiful thing in life is actually what you call nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/do-you-know-that-every-great-thing-in-the-history-of-art-and-every/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Yet this distance, all those abysses unbridged and then unbridgeable by radio, television, cheap travel and the rest, was not wholly bad. People knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/yet-this-distance-all-those-abysses-unbridged-and-then-unbridgeable/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) [Explore all 341 John Fowles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) ## More Capitalist quotes > [The popular mind often pictures gigantic flying machines speeding across the Atlantic carrying innumerable passengers in a way analogous to our modern steam ships.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-pickering/the-popular-mind-often-pictures-gigantic-flying-machines-speeding/) [William Henry Pickering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-pickering/) > [As the variable capital always stays in the hands of the capitalist in some form or other, it cannot be claimed in any way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/as-the-variable-capital-always-stays-in-the-hands-of-the-capitalist/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [Capitalists have done more good for society through their charitable giving, philanthropy and generosity than all their critics combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/capitalists-have-done-more-good-for-society-through-their-charitable/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [It is more than a little ironic that "capital accumulation" once a rather tendentious Marxian view of a supposed capitalist obsession, should have become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kuttner/it-is-more-than-a-little-ironic-that-capital-accumulation-once-a/) [Robert Kuttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kuttner/) > [When I was young, I worked for a capitalist twelve hours a day and I was always tired. Now I work for myself twenty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/when-i-was-young-i-worked-for-a-capitalist-twelve-hours-a-day-and-i/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [“Capitalist cycle of profit. The rancher sells a cow for profit. The butcher sells cuts for profit. The restaurant sells meals for profit. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/capitalist-cycle-of-profit-the-rancher-sells-a-cow-for-profit-the/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [For me, it is clear that we are currently in a period of structural crisis of capitalism going back to the 1970s, but deepening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bellamy-foster/for-me-it-is-clear-that-we-are-currently-in-a-period-of-structural/) [John Bellamy Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bellamy-foster/) > [As someone from the working class I was always interested in Russia and China and everything that related to the working class, even though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/as-someone-from-the-working-class-i-was-always-interested-in-russia/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Will capitalist economies operate at full employment in the absence of routine intervention? Certainly not. Are deviations from full employment a social problem? Obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-yellen/will-capitalist-economies-operate-at-full-employment-in-the-absence/) [Janet Yellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-yellen/) > [Capitalism has created a situation called scarcity. And that scarcity is not natural, it's socially induced. Along with that sense of scarcity, or feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/capitalism-has-created-a-situation-called-scarcity-and-that-scarcity/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [... what we should be looking for is fresh ideas of how we make moral decisions about our dealings with one another, economic, social,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/davis-mccaughey/what-we-should-be-looking-for-is-fresh-ideas-of-how-we-make-moral/) [Davis McCaughey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/davis-mccaughey/) > [When you come from a family of communists and you go through your teenage rebellion, what's the best way of rebelling from a family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-browder/when-you-come-from-a-family-of-communists-and-you-go-through-your/) [Bill Browder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-browder/) > [The Enron scandal calls into question the integrity of the entire capitalist system, which previously we assumed was based on honest, straightforward greed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-achenbach/the-enron-scandal-calls-into-question-the-integrity-of-the-entire/) [Joel Achenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-achenbach/) > [Human beings were behaving as human beings and not as cogs in the capitalist machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/human-beings-were-behaving-as-human-beings-and-not-as-cogs-in-the/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Beautiful women must think about their beauty as capitalists think about their investments or politicians about their majorities; it is all they have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-connolly/beautiful-women-must-think-about-their-beauty-as-capitalists-think/) [Cyril Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-connolly/) [Browse all 968 Capitalist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work routine. The nightmare of capitalist society is unemployment; the nightmare of cybernetic society will be employment.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Fowles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-pole-work-routine-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Capitalist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-pole-work-routine-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/baf/john-fowles-816_capitalist_man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-p_974290.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Man is about to be deprived of a great pole - work routine. The nightmare of capitalist society is…” — John Fowles", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Fowles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Man is about to be deprived...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-pole-work-routine-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/man-is-about-to-be-deprived-of-a-great-pole-work-routine-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```