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Chapter 9
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Flivver King, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Capitalism and Dehumanization
American Idealism and Disillusionment
Misinformation, Media Bias, and Ignorance
Individualism vs. Unionization
Technology and Progress
Summary
Analysis
The next day, Abner starts at the factory. The foreman shows Abner exactly what to do: Abner will place the wheels on the car’s axle and screw on the spindle-nuts with a wrench to hold the wheel in place. He has to make sure that the work is done accurately and carefully so that the car wheel will remain on firmly. Abner learns the job quickly and starts to become very fast at it. If he doesn’t keep up this pace, however, supervisors give him dark looks. Over time, Abner also learns to assemble the alarm bell and the lantern on the car. Abner is on the move the whole day, but he doesn’t mind it—he is getting 17 cents an hour and will be promoted if he works hard, which is all he can ask for.
While Abner’s job at the Ford plant gives him a new degree of social mobility and opportunity for advancement, there are also hints of the toll that the work will take on him and the other factory workers. Abner is given a specialized job, but when he doesn’t keep up the pace, supervisors take notice and discreetly criticize him for it. This foreshadows the ultimate problem with the assembly line, which forces workers to maintain a fast pace so that they can be as productive as possible, even if it comes at the cost of their health and safety.
Themes
