"All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace" by Richard Brautigan

In Brautigan’s poem, he describes two contrasting ideas as harmony together. The ironic thing is that nature and technology has always repelled each other. Although his words, if read literally, describes how wonderful technology has come together with nature, the overall tone is more sarcastic because of the word choices he uses.


In the title itself, “All Watched over by Machines of Loving Grace,” the personification of machines loving seems to be odd. Machines are viewed as artificial technology that has no capacity for feelings. In the first stanza, he uses the words “programming harmony.” Even though harmony is a good thing, the word programming makes it seem artificial which makes it fake. In the second stanza, he describes a scene where electronics are all over the forest and nature. The scene does not seem appealing because it degrades the beauty of nature. In the last stanza, Brautigan says that in a “cybernetic ecology” we will be “joined back to nature, returned to our mammal brothers and sisters.” This seems like technology has taken over and mankind will be degraded back to living in the wilderness along with all the other animals that have been affected by our technological dominance. His urgency in the parenthesis also suggests that technology is growing fast and soon it will take over.


Even if nature and technology overwhelm each other, Brautigan’s poem can be seen as hopeful that technology and nature will come together in harmony to create some sort of utopia. During his time, technology was becoming a great hit and created great convenience for everyone.


This poem can also be viewed as pro-technology because Brautigan implies machines as a God by saying we are “all watched over by machines of loving grace,” and at the same time “we are free of our labors.” It can also be interpreted that machines and technology take over so we can go back to being in nature and be carefree.


Although Brautigan’s poem can be read both ways, I think the anti-technology interpretation is a better way to see it. Since the poem was written in the hippie era, I believe many people did not want technology to dominate and many were in favor of a more natural environment. The poem also described very unlikely images of machines and nature working together, thus enhancing the irony that these two can coexist.