Russell calls the nature of management “monarchical” in organizations such as large factories and refers to their lack of a democratic structure as an “evil”. He explains what can happen if this “evil goes unchecked” by asserting that rebellion will take place. Later he states, “These evils are no longer necessary to the existence of civilization, they can be removed by the help of modern science and modern technique, provided these are used in humane spirit and with the understanding of the springs of life and happiness (50).” This quote is explaining how management or command of these companies lack a human element and choose not to deal with the employees as people, but as expendable machines. This result in the workers becoming so disconnected from the product they yield, they are not concerned about the quality of its construction or with management who is preoccupied with producing more to make more capital. In turn, the worker becomes more concerned about their benefits of working at such a job to take care of their families. I think that this belief connects to his opinion on people being so focused on the “next thing” as he referred to in the third lecture (30), which had to do with people losing sight of things that are spontaneously pleasurable because of their responsibilities to maintain themselves and others. These two ideas talk about a solution that enhances the human experience by including components that satisfy our spirits and bring delight such as observing art or cultivating a garden that could bring satisfaction and pride to people doing the task. Both ideas maintain that a thoughtless, monotonous daily routine will create miserable people who are disconnected from their occupations, but also themselves; which is what he felt the core problem of the Industrial Revolution along with its trait to destroy of avenues of creativity for people that ran smaller competing operations.
Karia Hill