qualities in civilization, like beauty and order. Technology is not worthless by any means, and it can provide some pleasure and comfort and ease. Freud acknowledges that speaking to a child on the telephone or receiving word that a friend has made a safe journey or saving mothers and children from infection and death are benefits. But he then speaks of the ways in which technology has actually made life more difficult and creates its own set of problems. There would be no need to speak to a child away from home or be glad to hear of a friend's safety if the child or friend had no means to travel so far. Freud also argues that since fewer children die young, people must go through the trouble of either repressing their sexual lives or raise numerous children they presumably cannot afford.

Freud concludes that there is no evidence that people are any happier today with all their technology than they were in previous generations without it. Technology simply cannot solve all the world's problems; in fact, it merely leads to new ones as humans gain mastery over one area and discover what they have not yet conquered.