Zen and the Art of
Motorcycle Maintenance begins with a conflict revolving around technology.
The speaker accepts technology and the benefits that it provides, while his
friends, John and Sylvia, are strongly against it. I think John and Sylvia are
a bit naïve to oppose technology, as it appears that they still make use of it
in their everyday lives. For one, their motorcycle, which seems to be used
often, is technology. In addition, they both require the use of technology for
small everyday tasks, such as turning on the lights or washing dishes. Even
though the two heavily oppose technology, they do not disregard it enough to
completely eliminate it from their lives. There is no question that technology
simplifies certain aspects of their lives, whether or not they will admit it.
They think that having someone else deal with their own technological problems
will alienate them from it, when this is not true at all. Conversely, I think
the speaker is intelligent in embracing technology. He wants to be familiar
with it so that he can fix his problems independently. I think the speaker’s
beliefs regarding technology reveal a significant amount about his character;
he enjoys the satisfaction of doing things on his own. I admire his ability to move
forward with society and learn how to take care of his own problems without
having to depend on someone else.
A blog dedicated to the in depth study of the book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, and its author Robert M. Pirsig, by the 2nd period AP Literature Class group.
I completely agree with Priya on the impracticality of John and Sylvia's opposition against technology and the speaker's wisdom in embracing it. By embracing technology the speaker is actually more capable of escaping it in traveling on his motorcycle because he knows how to make it run smoothly and can face any problems he may run into on his bike. John and Sylvia, on the other hand, could be stopped in their travels by their inability to fix their bikes as John was on that hot day in Minnesota. Furthermore the speaker is simply going to have a more easy life by embracing technology. Technology is not only necessary, as John and Sylvia are forced to live with, but it is helpful. Technology allows people to do things such as travel long distances, or even participate in a blog. By being open to technology, the narrator is opening himself up to all of the ways that technology can make the tasks of everyday life, like maintaining one’s motorcycle, simpler.
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