Please Hold - Themes

Please hold - themes

• Frustration with technology and the limits of automation

• Dehumanisation and loss of connection

• Consumerism

• Time and futility

How is frustration with technology portrayed?

The repeted interactions (repetition) with the robot, and even with the Agent, both of which lead to no where and an absece of solution exposes the inneficiency of automation. This inneficiency is told from the very human perspective, and the great frustration that he feels is contratsed with the robot he is met with, which is devoid of emotion or human connection. The poem evidences that the core issue with technology, and the reason for its inneficiency and failure is that it doesn’t have that human connection. This lack of human connection is what limits automation and results in a failure of the system. The increasingly frustrated tone, combined with the conversational structure emphasises that this is a very human struggle, and this contrasts the lack of humanity pof the robots.

Frustration with technology quotes:

• ‘The robot is giving me countless options,// none of which answer my needs’

• ‘I have a wonderful telephone number and a great account number’

• ‘‘I don’t understand says the robot. Please say yes or no’

• ‘I scream Agent! and am cut off’

• ‘Eine fucking Kleine Nachtmusik’

The robot is giving me countless options,// none of which answer my needs’

This highlights the inneficiency and the incapability of this autonomous system. It hints to the guise that capitalism presents, the allusion that these systems aim to solve problems when in reality the ‘countless options’ are a front for the lack of solutions or care that they wish to offer. The limits of autonomous systems in absence of humanity illutstrate that human connection is necesary in interactions, and that the world can not be seen as a binary.

‘‘I don’t understand says the robot. Please say yes or no’

This quote encapsulates the core issue of using these robotic systems. Due to their nature of being programmed robots, they are incapeable of percieving the world with humanity, incapable of coming up with new solutions or different ideas - robots are programmed to see the world through the binary of yes or no questions - it can not accoumt for other circumstances and is unfit to try and treat a society full of grey rather than black or white.

‘I scream Agent! and am cut off’

exclamation and direct speech - human frustration. 

‘Eine fucking Kleine Nachtmusik’

the repetition that leads up to this emphasises the frustration and almost pictures this descent into madness driven by his frustration with technology. The contrast between this German hold music and his frustration emphasises the superficial techniques of capitalist companies to mask their lack of care and appease their customers with useless options and calm appearances

How is dehumanisation and loss of connection presented

The cause of frustration with the robot is that is can not solve a need it does not understand - this transition to automatic response without care, the ‘future, here’, results in an incapable system that solves nothing. This dehumanisation is tied to a loss of autonomy, as the world is increasingly seen as a binary, people assigned to numbers, there is no possibility to retain humanity. The language of the ‘Agent’ who is just as ‘robotic’ and the wife’s acceptance of the future, repeting just as the robots, emphasises that this loss of connection has expanded from automatic systems and has leeched into real human interaction, which in itself has now been devoid of humanity. The concept that this transition is the future, now, is almost dystopian and emphasises that this frustration is inescapeable.

Dehumanisation and loss of human connection quotes:

• ‘Your future, here, she says’

• ‘Wonderful, says the robot… and Great, says the robot…’

• ‘And my wife says, This is the future’

• ‘You can say Agent if you’d like to talk to someone real, who is just as robotic’

• ‘Please hold’

• ‘This means the call is not important to them’

‘Your future, here, she says’

The concept of this future absent of human connection that is already here illutsrates an immediacy and inevitability to this depressing fate. The wife’s language mirrors that of the robot, using as few words as possible to get a point across - for efficiency - the mirroring of speech between the robots and humans illustrate this lack of humanity has spilled into what should be real human interactions

‘You can say Agent if you’d like to talk to someone real, who is just as robotic’

the juxtaposition between being ‘real’ and ‘robotic’ further portrays that this loss of human connection has breached our own interactions.

‘This means the call is not important to them’

Critique of corporate incinserity and the priority of profit over customer satisfaction. THe robotics are a symptom of a capitalist society that does not care

How is consumerism and capitalism portrayed?

The speaker critiques capitalism and consumerism, where companies profit from inneficiency and have no care for human connection or care. The robotic, automatic interactions symbolise a society plagued with capitalism that begins to prioritise numbers, profit and false efficiency over human care and providing solutions. Ultimately in the poem, these robotic interactions are a symptom of this capitalist society.

Consumerism and capitalism quotes:

• ‘and into my account (which is really the robot’s account) goes money, my money, to pay for nothing'

• ‘Yes but I’m paying for it I shout’

• ‘you can now meet your needs by looting’

‘and into my account (which is really the robot’s account) goes money, my money, to pay for nothing'

criticism of a coprorate and technological society. Nothing is physical or tangiable and everything goes to increasingly richer corporations, seemingly for nothing. Emphasises the futility of spending money on nothing with real value, it is the spending of money just to spend it, but it is necessary to be a member of society.

‘You can now meet your needs by looting’

being unlawful is the only way to exist as a separate entity to these robots and corporation. By exposing that the only way to live in their absence is to be unlwaful itportays that these robots and capitalist mindset is deeply entrenched in society - emphasises inescapability/

How is time and futility presented?

The repetition within the poem, and its relatively cyclical structure illustrates a stagnancy that introduces the theme of time and futility. The passing of time, through repetition again, exposes the inevitability of passing time into a future where we are further stripped of human autonomy. The idea that the ‘future, now’ is here, illustrates the haunting reality that this impersonal and depressing future is inevitable and inescapeable.

Time and futility quotes:

• ‘We are already there, and its the same as the present’

• ‘Your future, here, she says'

• ‘he is giving me no options’

• ‘Please hold. Please grow old. Please grow cold’

‘We are already there, and it is the same as the present’

stagnancy - impending doom. This future devoid of human emotion is inescapeable.

‘he is giving me no options’

Inescapable nature and futility of trying to work with the robots. There is no way to win

‘Please hold. Please grow old. Please grow cold’

Repetition - emphasises this idea of time continuing and nothing evolving - this technological advancement does not help it just makes us all far more robotic. Time is lose through automation and robotics - dystopican future. Imagery of ‘growing cold’ is chilling - growing to embrace this loss of humanity - everying is cold and without emotion