Modern Times and Modern Work

Prior to watching Modern Times, I was not sure what to expect. I had only heard vaguely of Chaplin before watching this movie, and I expected a slapstick comedy with lots of goofy antics and no plot. While the comic aspect was still apparent, the film was much more symbolic and held deeper meaning than most comic movies.

The way Chaplin does this is by connecting with the 'everyman,' and placing himself into a situation that is familiar to his audience. Crane says that Chaplin's film The Kid, "made me feel myself, as a poet, as being 'in the same boat' with him." The same and be said of Modern Times. We either connect with Chaplin because we have experienced the same thing, or we sympathize with him because of his situation.

In Modern Times, Chaplin plays a factory worker who is virtually chained to the assembly line. He deals with the average work stresses, such as angry foremen, difficult co-workers, and the charge to 'stay ahead,' lest he be fired. Throughout the film, we begin to realize that Chaplin's character is incredibly attached to his job in the sense that it has permeated his entire life. He has become incapable of controlling his body due to the repetitive job that he develops a spasm that interferes with not only his well-being, but also the safety of his coworkers. Eventually, he is declared insane and is presumably taken to a mental hospital.

While this film initially provides laughs, it does not take one long to draw parallels between Chaplin's work situation and modern employment circumstances. While Chaplin is forced to keep working faster, harder and more efficiently so that his company can stay ahead, modern employers feel the same stress of needing to work as efficiently as possible, lest they be reprimanded. 

While Chaplin's employers seek a way to completely eliminate lunch breaks so that they can be in production 24/7, nowadays corporations are constantly looking for ways to stay ahead, often at the expense of the employees. These decisions do not effect the higher-ups negatively (in the end, they have more capital), they often effect the lower-level employees adversely by eliminating breaks, extending work hours, and eventually harming the workers either physically, mentally, or emotionally. 

As a former employee for a major fast food chain, I have seen these occurrences firsthand, and Chaplin's depiction of the stress of the modern worker is not far from the truth. I have seen and experienced mental and physical fatigue caused by extended hours or unrealistic expectations of an employee's performance, all because the company's managers wanted the most profits. These higher-level employees did not care what the cost to the lower-lever workers was, as long as the company was succeeding.

It is sad to see that society has not progressed past this mentality. Ninety years following Modern Times, we see the same situations that were satirized by Chaplin continuing to occur just so companies can make money as quickly and efficiently as possible. While I understand that it is necessary for companies to make profits to stay afloat and compete with other businesses, it is often done at a much greater cost, one that is not monetary. Thinking back on my experiences at my first 'real' job at that restaurant, it is not difficult to place myself in Chaplin's shoes and recall the hardships I endured at the hands of a corporate giant. My personal experience was not nearly as traumatic as Chaplin's portrayal, but I know of many people who would say that the character's experience was not a far cry from what they dealt with as they worked long hours under hazardous conditions.