Previous
Chapter 11
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
Dinner at Kroner’s goes the way it always does. Kroner ushers Paul and Anita inside while his wife, whom everyone calls “Mom,” encourages them to tell her everything about their lives. Then, after a respectable amount of time, Kroner invites Paul back to his office to look at his guns. Everyone at Ilium Works knows that this is where Kroner offers raises, promotions, or disciplinary talks. Meanwhile, Anita and Mom stay in the living room.
There’s a predictable formality to the dinners that Kroner hosts. In this way, even Kroner’s social life is business-like, as if every aspect of his existence is wrapped up in the corporate world. This is possibly one of the reasons Paul is so unhappy with his life in Ilium: everyone in his social circles thinks almost exclusively about business. Considering that Paul doesn’t feel inspired by his job, it makes sense that he’d be bored and miserable in a community in which everyone obsesses over their careers.
Themes
After talking about his guns for a few minutes, Kroner asks Paul if he’s seen Finnerty recently. Apparently the police are looking for him because, now that he no longer has a job, he’s supposed to register with them. He adds that Finnerty can’t be trusted anymore. Paul agrees, which makes Kroner happy, though he then asks why Paul let Finnerty wander Ilium Works by himself. He also can’t figure out why Paul would let Finnerty have his gun. Paul can’t think of anything to say, but Kroner diffuses the tension by assuring Paul that he believes there’s a good explanation. He also says that he feels responsible for Paul now that Paul’s dad is gone.
In this moment, Paul learns that Kroner knows about all his recent missteps. What’s interesting, though, is that Kroner doesn’t seem to want to punish Paul for these mistakes. In fact, he doesn’t even wait to hear Paul’s excuses, instead insisting that he’s sure there are good reasons for Paul’s behavior. This just adds to the irony that defines Paul’s entire career: the more apathy he shows toward his job, the more respect he seems to gain from people like Kroner. It’s as if his success is inevitable, despite the fact that he has so many misgivings about automation and the entire corporate world. This, perhaps, is what keeps him from simply quitting, since it’s hard to turn away from success.
Themes
Kroner waxes poetic about technological advancement, saying there’s “no higher calling” than working as an engineer or a manager. This depresses Paul, though he doesn’t say anything. Kroner notes that the Pittsburgh job is still open, and that the decision has come down to just two people: Paul and Fred Garth, the manager of the Buffalo Works.
Again, it’s evident that Paul can do no wrong in Kroner’s eyes. The more mistakes he makes, the higher he seems to rise in the company. This suggests that it doesn’t actually take very much to succeed as a manager in this society, as long as a person has the right credentials and belongs to the elite upper class.
Themes
Paul tries to remember what Anita told him to say if Kroner brought up Pittsburgh. It doesn’t really matter what he says, though, because it’s obvious that Kroner wants to give him the job. Still, Kroner talks about how tough the decision will be. But soon he admits that he’d like to see Paul wind up in the position—though he isn’t sure about Paul’s loyalty. When Paul asks what he means, Kroner puts both his hands on Paul’s knees and tells him to confess what has been bothering him. Unable to turn away, Paul suddenly starts talking about what Lasher said the night before, going on about the “spiritual disaster across the river” and speaking gravely about a potential revolution.
It’s as if Paul can’t stop himself from finally voicing his misgivings about the power structures at play in society. Until now, he has mostly kept these ideas to himself, but now he shares them with Kroner. Of course, Kroner would probably be the last person to ever understand these ideas, since Kroner has devoted his entire life to business, firmly believing in the value of automation and the importance of efficiency. Nonetheless, Paul can’t keep himself from talking about the class division that this focus on productivity has created, demonstrating that it’s difficult to simply ignore these kinds of concerns once they take form.
Themes
Get the entire Player Piano LitChart as a printable PDF.
Kroner tells Paul to stay on his own side of the river. He also dismisses all of Lasher’s points, saying that it’s easier to pose questions than answer them. Paul is surprised to hear that Kroner knows Lasher, but Kroner says that he’s known of him for a while—he also knows that Paul and Finnerty were with him the night before. None of this, though, has changed his mind about the Pittsburgh job: he still wants Paul to take it. He’s just going to pretend last night didn’t happen and that Paul didn’t just say all those things about Lasher and the revolution. Paul is dumbfounded, feeling like he somehow got the job even though he had arrived at Kroner’s that night with the “vague intention of disqualifying himself.”
Again, Paul continues to advance through the company despite his failures. In fact, it becomes clear in this scene that he has, on a certain level, been actively trying to “disqualify[]” himself from the Pittsburgh promotion. This makes sense, considering that he’s unhappy in his current job. If he fully withdrew his name from consideration, though, he would upset Anita, who is obsessed with upward mobility. As a result, he has tried to make himself look bad. He has, however, failed to do so, since Kroner still wants to promote him—suggesting that it’s not as easy as one might think to escape corporate life.
Themes
The problem, Kroner says, is that the police are on Paul’s trail. The incident with Finnerty in the plant is quite serious, as is the fact that Paul’s pistol was found near the river. He could even go to prison. But Kroner says he doesn’t believe Paul was thinking straight, so he’s willing to cover for him: he wants to tell the police that Paul was working for him by going undercover to gather information about Lasher and Finnerty, who Kroner says are dangerous. For this reason, Kroner wants Paul to testify that they tried to convince him to join a sabotage plot against the Ilium Works.
Kroner puts Paul to the test, forcing him to choose between his job and Finnerty, his only genuine friend. Until this point, Kroner has overlooked all of Paul’s failures, but now he wants to manipulate him into going against Lasher and Finnerty—two men who share the same overall beliefs as Paul. Of course, Paul isn’t quite as convinced of the harmfulness of automation as the other two men are, but he certainly has misgivings about the entire social structure at play. Turning against Lasher and Finnerty would thus not only mean betraying a close friend, but also betraying his own beliefs.
Themes
Before Paul can say anything about testifying against Finnerty and Lasher, Baer thunders into the room, heartily congratulating him for getting the Pittsburgh job. Kroner tells him that they haven’t settled that matter yet, but Paul senses Baer’s interruption was planned.
If Baer interrupted Kroner and Paul’s conversation on purpose, this would suggest that Kroner and Baer are actively trying to manipulate him by controlling the flow of conversation. Stopping him before he can agree or disagree to Kroner’s terms is a perfect tactic, since Paul is a fairly passive person. Indeed, he rarely makes firm decisions, as evidenced by the fact that he’s unhappy in his job but has been doing it for 13 years. By ensuring that Paul can’t decline his offer, then, Kroner makes it all the more likely that Paul will go along with the plan. In this regard, Kroner treats Paul like a pawn.
Themes
Kroner tells Baer that Paul voiced some misgivings about whether the company’s progress might be bad for society, and Baer genuinely considers this, seeming legitimately troubled by the question—much to Kroner’s surprise. But he decides that people just have to act like progress is good. Otherwise, everyone would have to quit. Maybe, Baer muses, that’s exactly what he himself should do—though he doesn’t actually quit. Startled, Kroner suggests that they all retire to the living room, where Anita is pleased to learn that Paul landed the promotion.
Baer’s thoughts are surprising, since they suggest that he actually considers Paul’s points about the impact of technological progress on society. And yet, Baer is just thinking out loud, with no intention of actually quitting (or so it seems). This suggests that high-powered people have to just set these kinds of concerns aside in order to be successful—something Finnerty was unable to do. Whether or not Paul will be able to do this, though, remains unclear.
Themes
