Kinotrope Technology in The Difference Engine Essay

Kinotrope Technology in The Difference Engine - Essay Example Charles Babbage, now known as Lord Babbage, invention leads to Britain being ruled by intellectuals. The Lord Byron, once Charles’s assistant, goes on to become Britain’s prime minister (Gibson & Bruce 67). Furthermore, the invention of the Difference Engine causes class warfare between the old guard and the new guard. The new guard wins this war, led by Lord Byron who assumes power after this upheaval. The novel is not one continuous narrative about Babbage rather it is the amalgamation of three stories. The novel first introduces the reader to Sybil Gerard, the daughter of a Luddite. Luddites, in this book, are the working class that oppose technology and are suppressed by the rulers (Gibson & Bruce 83). Sybil is not successful in her search for gainful employment and resorts to prostitution to make ends meet. Later she becomes the apprentice of a clacker under Sam Houston in the state of Texas. The second character is Edward â€Å"Leviathan† Mallory who has several titles under his belt. He is an explorer and a palaeontologist. His story revolves around the fact that he is being chased for his knowledge of a device known as the Modus (Gibson & Bruce106). The last character in the book is Laurence Oliphant who elaborates the misgivings of this Information age. The book requires one to brush up on the history on Europe and America. The brushing up helps in reducing confusion during the book as it relays an alternate history with real life characters (Rapatzikou 47). Moreover, the writers display depth in information on the technological capabilities that would be realistic in that period. Majority of novels adopt a utopian perspective in describing technologies in their novels. The culture of this generation still possesses barbaric practices such as slavery and sexism remain in force despite the technological advancement of the era. Other areas such as medicine are left in medieval status (McHale, Brian & Randall