In chapter 11 ("The Loving Resistance Fighter") of the book Technopoly, published in 1992, Neil Postman focuses on a solution to the problems created by Technopoly. A "Technopoly" (a word postman capitalizes throughout the book) is a society that no longer merely uses technology as a support system but instead is shaped by it. Postman proposes that we become "loving resistance fighter(s)" who retain "the narratives and symbols that once made the United States the hope of the world"(p.182). He believes education is to lead the resistance against technology by changing the curriculum to help restore a sense of meaning and purpose lost to the Technopoly. This change in curriculum puts a large emphasis on humanity's historical development.

As an engaging cultural critic, professor at New York University, and author of numerous books on the themes of education and technology, Neil Postman is well positioned to comment on the relation of technology to culture. The relation as he sees it is one in which culture is subservient to and controlled by both invisible (I.Q. scores, statistics, polling techniques) and visible (television, computers, automobiles

Neil Postman offers direction to those who want to defend themselves from the destructive effects of Technopoly. This direction is based on the idea of the loving resistance fighter. The loving resistance fighter is the perfect balance of admiration for the country and resistance to Technopoly. The resistance fighter is aware of the advantages and disadvantages associated with technology. Technology is therefore seen as unnatural, controlling, and dangerous.

In Technopoly, Postman is writing to a broad audience, but while reading the book the reader feels as though they are one on one with Postman in a relaxed environment. The friendly tone used throughout the book creates an intimacy between Postman and the reader, as though they are good friends having an informal discussion. His vocabulary is not highly specialized, but when he does use higher-level vocabulary the word is immediately followed by a brief definition. For example Postman states, "Like history, semantics is an interdisciplinary subject: it is necessary to know something about it in order to understand any subject" (p.194). He gives the definition of interdisciplinary for those readers who may not know what the word means. Postman is also successful in expressing himself in a clear and logical manner. He often re-phrases hard to grasp statements or ideas in "lamens terms," using key phrases such as: "What I am trying to say...", "In short...", "I mean that...", and "The point I want to make is...." In addition to his use of key phrases, Postman's repeated use of enumeration is found throughout the book. For example, in chapter 3 ("From Technocracy to Technopoly"), Postman describes (using enumeration) the four interrelated reasons for the rise of Technopoly in America (52-53). Postman also likes use transitions to lead into the following paragraph or chapter. An exceptional example of his use of transitions is found in chapter 10 ("The Great Symbol Drain"), where he states; "I will reserve for the next and final chapter my own view of the struggle to find a purpose for education in Technopoly" (178). Although Postman feels very strongly about Technopoly, he does not only give the reader facts, he takes the time to tell a story or use a metaphor to better explain his position. In chapter 4 ("The Improbable World"), Postman uses a metaphor to clarify an idea, "The belief system of a tool-using culture is rather like a brand-new deck of cards. The role of the church in pre-modern Europe was to keep the deck of cards in reasonable order, which is why Cardinal Bellarmine and other prelates tried to prevent Galileo from shuffling the deck (59)."

Postman had the difficult task of writing a book concerning the very complicated subject of Technology and its severe effects on society. His clever writing style helps readers understand and also become interested in a topic that most neither care nor think about. Postman is writing to a broad audience with varying intellectual levels, but is successful in capturing and keeping the attention of any reader. Every chapter in Technoply is a sepa

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Approximate Word count = 2084
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)