Modern Mass Society Discussed by SCM

Characteristic of modern economic conditions is Mass Society, where men and women are brought together in huge numbers, where the machine and factory are kings, and mass production the order of the day.

Taking this as the background, Rev. J. M. Bates, M.A., speaking in the College under the auspices of the SCM, considered the problem, of "Mass Society and the Individual."

Individuality (being those qualities that make one man distinctly himself and not another) tends to be blurred by the deadly sameness of this environment it is difficult to see how we can have the benefits of this mass producing era, without the corresponding disadvantages of standardisation.

The deeply personal things in human life are religious, says Professor MacMurray. Christianity is concerned with the whole personality, of which there are two aspects: the relationship of God and Man, and that of man with man. The Church always [unclear: thes] must stand for preserving the personality of the individual. Can mass society have such an effect as to make a man incapable of "loving"? Human personality, Mr. Bates considered, was a pretty strong thing, and in general mass society would not completely crush a man's individuality and prevent him from loving. This does not, of course, lessen our responsibility for bettering social conditions.

Answering a question, Mr. Bates said that routine did not necessarily mean the suppressing of personality. Habit and routine plays a part in all lives. We dress unconsciously, and wash dishes three times a day more or less automatically, without feeling that our personalities have suffered. He looked forward to a time when mass production would be relegated to a similarly subordinate position. Production might be limited to one part of the week leaving the individual free to engage in community activities, and to develop every side of his personality, which was what Christianity aimed at in the Christian view of life.

—D.B.

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Had I twenty fingers
Instead of only eight,
Then I could do arithmetic
Far more complicate.