Publications and Research
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2026
Abstract
Paul Kingsnorth, in his book Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity, asserts that the ecological destruction, consumerism, and social atomization that have come to define contemporary life are the product of a malevolent force he calls the Machine. This review finds that his proposed solution to these crises, namely a return to "traditional" forms of family and community, insufficiently addresses the material and structural conditions underlying the capitalist mode of production. Kingsnorth’s dismissal of Marxism is then interrogated by juxtaposing his critique of the Machine with Marx’s analysis of estranged labor. Finally, this review concludes that the political program that Kingsnorth outlines towards the end of the book (“reactionary radicalism”) shares several affinities with right-wing thought.
