For seven weeks now, Apple TV+ has been putting our brains to the test with the second season of Severance. As Dan Erickson’s series unfolds its story, some mysteries are lifted, but others thicken. This is particularly true regarding Lumon and the “mysterious and important” mission of our heroes. Are the numbers on the screens of the dissociated employees linked to memories? Cloning or creation of a super-powerful machine, the series produced by Ben Stiller is sparing its effects. However, one term has gained a lot of importance in recent weeks and relates to an important event in American history as much as that of Lumon. It is not to be taken lightly.
The founding of Lumon
In the series, we learn that Lumon was founded in 1865 by the charismatic Kier Eagan. We are told that the company was first a humble pharmaceutical company before becoming a pioneer in the biotechnology industry. Kier Eagan would remain at the head of the firm for 74 years and would leave his place to his son Dieter on his deathbed. Seven other great leaders would follow until James Eagan who has held the position since 2008, according to the information presented in the life wing. This date, 1865, was clearly not chosen at random. It echoes an important part of American history: the Civil War. It was on April 9, 1865 that the conflict between the Confederation of Southern States and the Union of Northern States ended. As a reminder, this civil war was about the issue of the slave trade in the country.
Cold Harbor
This date is not the only element related to the Civil War mentioned in the series. The term “Cold Harbor”, which is repeatedly uttered by Kier executives and has been the primary mission of the “Microdata Refinement” department since the beginning of Season 2. It is repeatedly stated that Mark is essential to the smooth running of operations and that he is about to take a crucial step, arguably the most important in Lumon’s history. The Battle of Cold Harbor is one of the most significant battles of the American Civil War. It took place in Virginia, between May 31 and June 12, 1864, and was one of the most bitter defeats for the Union. What if the company tried to replicate this victory (for the South) in order to change the course of history and sign the return of the exploitation of human beings with the greatest impunity? After all, the idea of modern slavery has been used several times by the detractors of Lumon and dissociation.
Total slavery
What if Mark and his colleagues sorted emotions to allow their company to annihilate them in its employees? After all, this is how Mark explains his job to Helly, he asks her to sort the numbers on her screen according to the feelings they give her. This would be a way for Lumon to digitize human intelligence and find a way to make its dissociated employees real machines (intelligent but not endowed with affect). No anger, no love, no jealousy or even sadness, just men and women capable of performing repetitive or even downright demeaning tasks without feeling the slightest fatigue. It would also be a way for Lumon to have a workforce without qualms, especially if it is a question of overstepping morality or the law. Mark's wife could be one of his subjects studied by the basement, a guinea pig for a great experiment. Severance has three episodes left to give us some initial answers.
0 Comments