About the meaning of one paragraph in the book, Public Opinion
I met a confused sentence in this following paragraph:
So long as so many jobs are an endless and— for the worker—an aimless routine, a kind of automatism using one set
of muscles in one monotonous pattern, his whole life will tend towards an automatism in which nothing is particularly to be distinguished from anything else unless it is announced with a thunderclap.
And, what is the meaning of "unless it is announced with a thunderclap"?

Question

Answer

Broadly, "everything is the same, nothing attracts attention except a noise as loud as a thunderclap." I agree with Michael. This a long sentence that is written in strictly correct grammar, with a precisely meaning--yet very badly written. Here is my "translation:"

"Many jobs force a worker to use one set of muscles endlessly, in one monotonous pattern, like a robot. People forced to do robotic work will tend to lead robotic lives. Nothing will seem different or unusual to them, unless it hits them like a bolt of lightning."

Answer

Terrible sentence!  If you announce something "with a thunderclap", it means that you do it very loudly and obviously in order to attract attention.