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Chapter 20
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Player Piano, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Technology and Progress
Happiness, Self-Worth, and Passion
Class Division and Competition
Corporate Life vs. Human Connection
Summary
Analysis
Paul sits next to Kroner at an outdoor amphitheater on the second night of the Meadows. After a day spent playing sports against the other teams, Paul feels pretty good; he performed very well, which he suspects is because he didn’t care whether or not his team won. This, in turn, has put him in a very good mood, as he casually considers the possibility of giving his notice that very night. This decision doesn’t stress him out, but rather makes him feel empowered—he will decide later what he wants to do.
Again, Paul drifts through his corporate life without fully asserting himself. Usually, though, he does this in a state of unhappiness, but now he feels good, comforted by the possibility of finally quitting. In fact, it’s almost as if the mere idea of quitting is enough for him, since it makes him feel like he has control over his own life. But in reality, he’s just going through the motions, getting swept up in the competitive games at the Meadows and, in doing so, investing himself in the company’s competitive spirit. He is, in other words, behaving exactly how Kroner would want him to behave, ultimately demonstrating how easy it is to get wrapped up in the corporate lifestyle.
Themes
After a skit suggesting that “John Averageman” is better off because of automation and the current societal structure, the crowd makes its way to a bonfire. Kroner talks the whole way about how fantastic the skit was—even though it was basically the same as it is every year. Then, at the bonfire, the employees watch yet another skit. In this one, a Native American man speaks about loyalty to his tribe in a way that’s clearly meant to inspire the employees in the audience to devote themselves wholeheartedly to the company.
This corporate retreat is basically one long campaign to convince employees that what they’re doing is worthwhile. The first skit, for instance, makes the argument that the company’s work of building and maintaining machines has made the world a tangibly better place. This, of course, isn’t really true, especially since it’s hard to argue that the “average” American citizen has benefited from automation and the social structures at play in this version of the United States—after all, most people who aren’t engineers have been forced out of their jobs as a result of mechanization. But the skits don’t take this into account because their main purpose is to increase morale at the company. This is also why the skit narrated by an actor dressed as a Native American is about loyalty.
Themes
After the skit, everyone makes their way to the bar—everyone, that is, except Kroner and Paul, who sneak off to meet with Doctor Gelhorne. Gelhorne says he called this meeting because there are people out there who want to ruin the company by destroying the production plants. These people even plan to overtake the entire country. They call themselves the Ghost Shirt Society, and Gelhorne believes they’re based in Ilium. Gelhorne knows Finnerty is a member, so it’s clear that the Society likes disillusioned ex-managers. For this reason, it’s likely that the Society would happily recruit Paul, so Gelhorne wants him to go undercover.
The existence of the Ghost Shirt Society proves the point that Lasher made the first time Paul met him: namely, that the country is headed toward a revolution. In order to break down this society’s intense class division, it’s necessary to destroy places like the Ilium Works, since these production plants have enabled machines to replace human laborers in the workforce. This, it seems, is exactly what the Ghost Shirt Society has in mind, taking aim at the country’s overreliance on machines as a way of upending society’s unequal power dynamics.
Themes
Gelhorne reveals that he has already circulated rumors that Paul is getting fired—Gelhorne’s colleagues purposely said something to this effect in front of Shepherd at dinner that night. This will surely make the Ghost Shirt Society pay attention to him. Of course, Paul isn’t actually getting fired; Kroner makes sure Paul will still have the Pittsburgh job when he’s finished infiltrating the Ghost Shirts. In the meantime, Paul has to leave the Meadows that very night, and he can’t even tell Anita what’s going on. All of this will help him “clear up [his] record,” Gelhorne points out, referring to the fact that Paul not only let Finnerty into the plant unescorted, but also lost track of his pistol.
Kroner has already implied that this assignment to infiltrate the Ghost Shirt Society is an opportunity for Paul to advance his career. However, the way Gelhorne brings up Paul’s “record” suggests that the company will force him into doing this regardless of what he wants. Although his career might benefit from this, he’s basically getting blackmailed. To that end, Gelhorne has already put the plan in motion by spreading the news that Paul is about to get fired, essentially making it impossible for him to refuse the assignment without losing his job.
Themes
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Kroner assures Paul that his father would be proud of him, and suddenly Paul feels a wash of anger. Before Kroner and Gelhorne leave, he stops them to say one last thing: “I quit.” They chuckle. “That’s the spirit,” says Gelhorne. “I mean it! I’m sick of the whole childish, stupid, blind operation,” Paul insists. Kroner smiles. “Attaboy,” he says.
Having put off his decision to quit, it appears that Paul has waited too long: he has already gotten swept up in the momentum of this plan to infiltrate the Ghost Shirt Society, and nothing he can say will convince Kroner or Gelhorne that he’s serious about leaving the company. This is partly because neither Kroner nor Gelhorne could possibly fathom why anyone would want to leave the company in the first place—a testament to how unheard of it is for a powerful, respected person like Paul to turn away from corporate success.
Themes
