Winner. Autonomous Technology

8/9/2019 Winner. Autonomous Technology

1/199

Autonomos TecholochnicsoofConol as a hm n Poliical hough

go

PeCmde Mhuett nd London Ennd


2/199

306.46 WIN 0/

T abac

yrght© 1977 by h Maachutt Ittut f chgy

rght rd. art f th b may b rrducd ay f r byay ma ctrc r mchaca cudg htcyg rcrdg r byay frmat trag ad rtal ytm wthut m wtg frmth ubhr.

h b wa t by th Lghthu Pr rtd th Utd Statf mrca

Lbrary f gr atagg Pubcat Data

Wr Lagdutmu chgy.

Icud Idx1 chgySca act. 2. ch

Phy 3. chcracy. I. t..5.W56 301.23 760100ISB 026223078X (hardcr

ISB 0-26273099 (arbac

my at ad Mr.


3/199

Coes

Preface x

Inoducio

Chae uonoy and Msery Maey and I Lo Auonoy and Anmm

Chae Enges o hage Momenum and Move echnolocal vouon Technologcal Deemnm echnologcal D Unceany and Unnenon The echnologca meave

Chae he Flaw and s Orgns Naue and Ween Cvzaon The Vcoy o Technque

The Seach o a Ne hc

Chae echnocracy

Clacal echnocacy Technocacy and Lbeam

Coes v

Chae 5rfce and Order 1

The Technologcal Socey: Goundwok Technologca Polc: Mae and Slave Reved Ode, Dclne, and Pace Tanomao and Incooaon Revee Adaaon

Chae echological Poliics

Revee Adaaon and Conol The Technologcal Imeave and he Sae The Revoluon and I Tool

Chae oplex and he Loss of ency Comlexy: Mane and Concealed The Lo o Agency n Technologcal Syem

Chae rakense's Proble Technology a Legaon Luddm a emoogy

Noes

Idex


4/199

eace

e qetio that iform thi boo prig from my comig to term

with a et of problem i political ad academic life of the pat decade

y cocer too hape at a itittio, the Uiverity of Califoriaat Bereley, which had, for reao it leader thoght emietly pro-

greive, defied itelf a a vat reearch, traiig, ad ocial ervice

mechaim A it pred that ed, it philoophy bega to exemplify a mode of hma relatohip that here decribe a techological

politic That model evetally came to grief i a itatio that cat

mor ocial ie of the ad early civil right, Vietam,

racim, ad militarimat the door of the "mltiverity the lively

ad ometime violet cotroverie of that period, Bereley became a

place i which politic i the plaza ad learig i the claroom were

ever far removed Thi wa epecially tre for thoe of fortate tobe tdyig political theory ad itellectal hitory drig thoe year

For whatever oe poitio o the war or latet iverity cotrovery

happeed to be, the lectre, ectio, ad readig o Thcydide,

Aritotle, Hobbe, Loce or arx alway eemed directly ited to

dilemma immediately at had

wih to expre pecial tha to my teacher at BereleySheldo

oli, oh Schaar, Haa Pit i, Nora acobo, ad Thoma

orriowhoe ability to mix cholarly cocer with broader hma

commitmet i a ipiatio to all who tdy with them y ivolve-

met with ie of political thoght, which they ecoraged, wa later

give foc by the qetio abot techology ad politic raied by

Todd La Porte, a ma whe iteret i my wor made it poible for

me to cotie whe might otherwie have topped Sheldo Woli

read the macript i it earliet tage ad made may helpfl gge-

tio abot the directio it might tae Later draft were coiderably

improved by the commet of Darrell Hawthore, im iller, ra

Krzba, Todd La Porte, Robert Biller, ad my colleage at T,

le oga Charle Weier Natha Sivi, ad oeph Weizebam

To Haa Piti, Kai Lee, ad Herma va Gtere owe a pecialdebt for their liebylie commetarie o my writig Thi wold be

a mch better, albeit mch loger boo if had followed all of their


5/199

x

sggesos As s, ha hem fo seeg me hogh a me of

ffcles a owa a pojec ha ow exes fa beyo he co

fes of hs oe saeme o Va Vle, who oes o ea mascps, flece mch of wha appeas hee hogh hs sese of he

comey of ae a afce The feshp a ecoageme of

Gel acs a Bce off have ofe ssae me hs a

ohe wo

Wha he eae fs hee s a eale eame of a heme ele

va o polcal heoy, whch, seems o me, has eve eceve sff

ce aeo eologca pespposos acal, cosevave, a

leal hogh have ee o peve scsso of a poblem ech

cs a polcs ha has foce self oo he agea of o mes

The pobem as fs a mos powflly ase fo me by a speaeo he seps of Spol Hall Decembe Thee s a me, hs

voce ag o, "whe he opeao of he mache becomes so oos ,

maes y o so sc a hea ha yo ca ae pa; yo ca eve pas-

svely ae pa, a yove go o p yo boes po he geas a

po he wheels, po he leves, po all he appaas a yove

go o ae sop A yove go o cae o he people who

, o he peope who ow , ha ess yoe fee, he mache wll

be pevee fom wog a all Those wos mae a g po fo he se geeao of

ha ecae a gave me he fs glmmegs of my sbec hee Co-ceale hem was a coaco, whch eves of sbsee yeas

have mae clea, ha hee ae sos oe ms oppose a

sggle o mofy eve hogh oe also has coseable affeco fo

hem

Autonoou Technolo


6/199

e or other techology ha bee a cetral theme po oght or the pat two hdred year Althogh the deto

h e o cocer ha aga ad aga hted, t h bee cleardrg th tme that there omethg the atre o moder tech

ology ther ca ll aord to gore A partal catalog o the topc

that have bee aocated th varo apect o moder techc

wold clde the ollowg: the dtral revolto ad the re o

dtral ocety the acedacy o the mddle cla the poblty o

topa the mery o the worg cla ad the ecety o revolto,

the re o ew elte the ocal ad pychologcal trmol volved

rapd chage aleato, atoalm, mperalm, lere ad the po-

blty o ecologcal dater

Depte t wdely acowledged mportace, however, techologyte ha eldom bee a prmary bject matter or poltcal or ocal

qre Whle techologcal developmet are commoly cted aamog the mot mportat cae o the hape o moder ocety thetedecy ha bee to ee the matter olely term o ecoomc ad

ecoomc htory perpectve that de to ther pecal mode o ab-tracto ad electvy gve a very lmted vo o the role techc

have played moder htory Wrter who have ggeted the eleva

to o techologyrelated qeto to a more cetral potoWllam

F Ogbr Lew mord, Lele Whte ad otherhave or the mot

part bee pol tely gored The prevalet opo ha remaed that the

tre problem o moderty cold bet be dertood way that ex

clded all drect reerece to the techcal phere Techology cold be

let to the techca

recet year however the prevalg wd o eglect have beg

to ht Techology ad t varo maetato have become vrtal

obeo dco abot poltc ad ocety o a wde varety o

rot Socal cett, poltca breacrat, corporate maager,

radcal tdet a well a aral cett ad egeer are ow

ted the coclo that om ethg we call " techology le at thecore o what mot trobleome the codto o or world

ere , o core lttle agreemet a to the atre o the problem

ntodution 3

or abot the approach that a ellget pero hold tae the

qet or dertadg the eye o cett ad techca, the

e tae the orm o a moral dlemma that hover meacgly overther wor Sce World War they have become creagly etve

to the act that cetc techologe have prood ad ote or-

tate coeqece the world at large Wth the etralty o ther

proeo ad prodct ow qeto they have beg teve

qre to the poltcal ad ethcal cotext which ther actvte

ext

From the pot o vew o ocal cett ad maager the crcal

e are thoe o the creag complexty ad rate o chage

moder ocety Developmet the techcal phere cotally ot-

pace the capacty o dvdal ad ocal ytem to adapt A the rateo techologcal ovato qce t become creagly mportat

ad creagly dclt to predct the rage o eect that a gve

ovato wll have Whe compoded by the creag complexty

o ocotechcal ytem thee chage mae t more ad more d-

clt to carry ot ome o the mot bac actvte o cotemporary

ocal le plag deg, ad ctoal coordato For th

reao complexty ad chage are creagly tded a depedet

varable ad to have objectvely owable correlato to certa

d o ocal ad po ltcal pheomea2 other mode o terpretato however the cocer o the at

ral ad ocal cett are held to be trval elervg ad bede the

pot Radcal crtc o "the techologcal ocety both rope ad

Amerca have ted that what deerve or atteto ot the rate o

techologcal ovato ad t eect b t rather the very extece o

advaced techology the le o ma Techology accordg to

th vew a orce o domato that eectvely rle all orm o

moder thoght ad actvty Whether by a heret property or by a

cdetal et o crcmtace techology loom a a oppreve orce

that poe a drect thrt to hma reedom the word o Alle

Gberg "Orelve caght the gat mache are codtoed to t

term, oly holy vo or techologcal catatrophe or revolto brea


7/199


8/199

·•

NO d as e disclse f Cpeicss De Revo e ea evlves ad e s ae a vice vesa

d gly eqivale e ealizai a e s ises i ig ad ses i e eveig; f e asisig fac a e afe ae as smbled p is meely is eclgy i

vais maifesais is a sigifica pa f e ma wld s

ces pcesses ad aleais e e i a d becme pa f

ces pcesses ad aleais f ma cscisess scieyad pliics Te emaable impac f asall La ad acqes

lll ess ei abiliy sesiize mde adieces smeg

ey ad veled we ae sded all sides pssibly eve e

ie side} by a myiad f eciqes ad eclgies Appely

ese ifleces ad becme s mc a pa f eveyday life a eyad becme vially ivisible Te cages ad dispis a a

evlvig eclgy epeaedly cased i mde life wee acceped as

give ieviable simply becase e beed as wee

ee wee e pssibliies is f is eas a e discssi

ab e place f eclgy i ma exisece eqies mc me

a facile al a w well w ply eclgy accds wi

ma vales9 Oe ca paapase Campaella i sayig a if e

bsevais f lll cLa acse mfd Sype Galbai

ad es ae cec we sall ave d a leas sme f e w f

scial sciece ad pliical ey i a ew wayTe aalgy ee lie ms e aalgies is valid ly if ae i

mdeai meiig e scieific evli i e same bea

as pese qesis ab eclgy am asig e eade

ace all cceivable similaiies bewee a sciece f ae ad a

sciece f aifice paicla am sggesig a e isses ee

ae slely "empiical es a ca be adle g impved

scial scieific medlgy Te edecy i eseac f a id is defie all pblems as se f cage ad gae daa eleva

seleced celais Wile sc w is smeimes ieesig

ave eve bee cviced a e ccial qesis a ad ae bessdied i ems f cage f ee wee eve ae eclgical

roduo 7

beag ivai advace ad eve ae scial ec

lgical pliical cseqece we wld sill face a s f pblemsab e meaig f eclgy i e life f ma c f scial

scieific eseac i is aea ams a imp f ismeai

visiy i measig ad cmpaig qaifiable vaiablesae

a a eaes eff advace desadig

B i is clea a we wld w wa d wi e ew

mdels ad daa eve if we ad em Wee des e ece a icad lively discssi ab e pacical mal ad pliical cex i

wic ese fidigs mae sese lms wee e pe is a a

ew sdy f eclgical affais wld big gee e eleva

spees f wledge dgme ad aci i a way a mig pi

me iellige cices Teclgy afe all is ieely pagmaic deals wi esablisig wa e was ad w e was

pse i B i alms every b aicle e sbec e discs

si salls e same seile cclsi "We ave demsaed e

elaisip bewee Teclgy X ad scial cages A B ad CObvisly Teclgy X as implicais f asdig gd eil is p maid decide wic e case will be

P maid Alg fesly eqipped wi e bes fidigs f

scial sciece i is sill lef ldig e bag A is pi e fac

vale disici csideed as a mal impeaive as is ms leal

effecs Te scial scieis pesmably e pes w ws msab e isses a ad ceases iqie i e pacical implica

is f is w w T g fe e believes is ead e sil

f "vales a aea a e lds be lile me a a s field

f pesal pefeeces pedice ad alfbaied malism Te idea

a ee cld be a easble basis p wic e cld aive a

geeal cclsis ab wise wise cices f pliical sciey is

ally feig im Afe e explais e elaisips fd i e

daa is cibi eds

Te f e mae is a deficiecy des lie i e

wa f wellveified facs Wa we lac is beaigs Te cempay expeiece f igs eclgical as epeaedly cfded


9/199

!

om· pectatio ad or capacity to mae itelliget dgIII O argmet coclio ad choice that wold have

ly obvio i earlier time are obvio o loger Patter ofv thiig that were etirely reliable i the pat ow le ad ically atray ay of or tadard cocepti of techology

vl j a diorietatio that border o diociatio from reality Ad alog a we lac the ability to mae or itatio itelligible all of the

data i the world will mae o differece

A $ood illtratio of thi tate of diorietatio ca be ee i thepecliar way i which the word te

hoog appear i academic ad

everyday peech pat decade the term had a very pecific limited

ad problematic meaig Pero who employed the term poe of

a "prctical art "the tdy of the practical art or the practicalart collectively the literatre of the eighteeth ad ieteeth

cetrie ch meaig were clear ad were ot the occaio for de

liberatio or aalyi ehoog i fact wa ot a importat termi decriptio of that part of the world we wod ow call techologi

cal ot people poe directly of machie tool factorie idtry

craft ad egieerig ad did ot worry abot "techology a a

ditictive pheomeo

the twetieth cetry however the ligitic covetio ha

gradally chaged ehoog ha expaded rapidly i both it deo

ttive ad coottive meag t i ow widely ed i ordiary adacademic pech to tal abot a believably divere collectio of

pheomeatool itrmet machie orgaiatio method

techie ytem ad the totality of all thee ad imilar thig i

or experiece The hift i meaig from omethig relatively precie

limited ad importat to omethig vage expaive ad highly

igificat ca be traced thgh the defiitio i Webter a

brided dictioary Webte·eod Itetio 199 he word

i aid to mea idtrial ciece the ciece or ytematic owledge

of the idtrial art epecially of the more importat mafactre

Webte hid New Itetio (1961) however the defiitiobloomed ito the followig "the totality of mea employed by a

Inotion 9

people to provide itelf with the obect of material cltre Today,

eve thi defiitio eem too arrow for if we otice how the word i

actally employed it certaily cover mch more ha t the a terialobect of cltre Some of the mot itrigig ew techologie have

to do with the alteratio of pychological or pirital tate

ay pero fid it comfortable to leave the meaig of teh-

oog i thi form Social cietit ally iit that a precie

maageable operatioal defiitio be hammered ot From their poit

of view if thi i ot doe we will rely fid orelve i the poitio

of ace lll who defie hi cetral cocept tehiqe, a "the

totit of method tio ived t d hvg bote effiie

for a give tage of developmet) i eve field of hma activity

Sch a defiitio lll critic complai i overly broad ad doe otapproach the meaig of or word tehoog diagree While lll

additio of abolte efficiecy may cae difficltie hi otio

of tehiqe a the totality of ratioal method cloely correpod tothe term tehoog a ow ed i everyday glih lll teh

iqe ad or tehoog both poit to a vat divere biito

totality that tad at the ceter of moder cltre Both iclde a

btatial portio of what we mae ad what we do

There i of core otig al i the dicovery that a im

portat term i ambigo or imprecie or that it cover a wide diverity

of itatio Wittgetei dicio of "lagage game ad"family reemblace i hioophi Ivetigtio illtrate how

freetly thi occr i ordiary lagage For may of or mot

importa t cocept it i ftile to loo for a commo elemet i the

pheomea to which the cocept refer "Loo d ee whether there

i aythig commo to allFor if yo loo at them yo will ot eeomethig that i commo to all, bt imilaritie relatiohip ad a

whole erie of them at that

What i iteretig i thi cae however i that a cocept that wa

oce very pecific i the way it wa ed ha ow become amorpho ithe extreme There i a tedecy amog thoe who write or tal abot

techology i or time to coclde that techology i everythig ad


10/199

Irduion 10

eythig i techoogy a diaectic of cocept that Hege woud

hae appeciated, the wod ha come to mea eeythig ad aythig

it theefoe theate to mea othig

Fo thoe who woud ite to aguage athe tha pefom eabo

ae opeatio o it, thi aoyig ymptom wi ot be tae a a

occaio to impoe a abitay defiitio t houd be ee a a

iteetig ig What doe thi chaotic ue of the tem tehnolog

idicate to u?

A awe to thi quetio i that whie the phee of techic oehe o ta about ha gow apidy, the iguitic eouce of pub

ic dicoue hae chaged itte at a Speciait i the aiou ub

diiio of techoogy hae deeoped cocept to mae thei ow

phee of actiity iteigibe to them; but fo the mot pat thee co-cept emai foeig ad ee myteiou to the opeciait o the

peciait of aothe fied The ame cocept uefu i buidig ad

maitaiig a gie techoogy ae ot thoe uefu i udetadig

it boade impicatio fo the huma commuity thi ee the

cofuio uoudig the cocep techoogy i a idicatio of

a id of ag i pubic aguage, that i, a faiue of both odiay

peech ad ocia cietific dicoue to eep pace with the eaity that

eed to be dicued Techoogy, theefoe, i appied haphazady

to a taggeig coectio f pemea, may of which ae ecetadditio to ou wod Oe fee that thee mut be a bette way ofexpeig oeef about thee deeopmet, but at peet ou

cocept fai u

Oe coequece of thi tate of affai i that dicuio of the po-

itica impicatio of adaced techoogy hae a tedecy to ide

ito a poaity of good eu ei Becaue thee i o midde goud

fo taig about uch thig, tatemet ofte ed up beig expe

io of tota affimatio o tota deia Oe eithe hate techoogy o

oe it my ow attempt to pea with cietit, egiee, ad

maage oe the yea, hae agai ad agai u ito epoe that

efue to toeate ay mbiguity o thi cheihed, theadbae di-chotomy hae tied to poit out that Ameica ha fo too og

Intdtin I

ubtiuted techica outio fo pobem that wee eithe poitica o

moa i atue hae uggeted that thee might be ome deiabe

ateatie to the way i which we ow empoy aiou id of techoogyfo exampe, othe way of tuctuig the ue of teeiio

tha ou eet atiowide, copoateowed etw A iocuou

a thee iew ae, they ae ofte tae a a theat Ay citicim of

ociotechica pactice coud oy be ie oppoitio Youe ut

uig techoogy a a whippig boy, the epoe come bac "You

ut wat to top poge ad ed u bac to the idde Age with

peaat dacig o the gee

A typica epoe of egiee, fo exampe, i to aouce that

they ae meey pobem oe Te u the pobem, they demad

We wi fid a outio That ou ob But you may ot peume toquetio the atue of ou outio You ae ot a membe of a tech

ica pofeio ad, theefoe, ow othig of eeace f you iit

o aiig queio about the appopiatee of the mea we deie,

we ca oy cocude that you ae atitechoogy

t oo become cea that i thi eighteed age thee i amot o

midde goud of atioa dicoue, o aaiabe commo aguage

with which peo of diffeig bacgoud ca dicu matte of

techoogy i thoughtfu, citica tem Coatio gaitate towad

waig poaitie ad chooig ide Oe ouce of faciatio i my

iquiie ha bee that exitig dicuio ae ofte thooughy e-ou, ee hyteia Whe iteiget peo ca become o upet oe

uch oteiby mudae matte, thee i omethig pecuia goig o

It i not poibe to cea up the inadequacie in ou peech habit

with a ige toe But ha offe ome baic ditictio that wi

be uig i my witig hee

Firs

I want to note the ca of object we nomay efe to a tech-

n

ogic l-tools,

itumet machie, appiace, weapo, gadget

which ae ued in accompihing a wide aiety of tak In peaking of

object of thi ot I ha empoy the rm � Fo many pe- -

on, technoogy" actuay mean appaatu, that i, the phyica

e) �


11/199

w

I niNo wnl t ar th whol body th � _ £tiit � 11M I hndN, rocdues routinsthat pole engage in t acomplish

IHkH ild ativiti dr th rbri£_� T rootof l:his word i h Gr techn ("art "raf or "ill) wih

nuits hav furr ace to the IdoEurpean oo teks- (to weav

r fabricate). From the ealiest times ehnique has e distin-

guished from oter oes f humn actin by i s urpsive, ratinal

tpbytp way of doig ig

In addition "cnogy frequently refers some (but no al)

varieties of socia organizationfactories, workshops bureaucracies

armies research and development eams, ad e lie. For m uses

hr th tr rgizi will igify all variti o t il (ra

tioalprodtiv) oial aragt Aohr lly rlatd trn �

WQ!&

_-:\i

ll mark hose l r� l(_!Ye. s !: LC9 e _�J and

apparatus lie a -g


12/199

ooy 14

Jo Kee Galbai' The New Idustri tte e oioappea a a e waig o e Aeia pbli a led o e o·

lio wi oe will fid peaive Galbai ave awe ae beoig e eva i og a i aio of e aiewe ave eaed o eve 2 o Hum Aim Re Dboe oed biologi offe a view a obie oviio ad oaliedliy: eology ao eoeially eape fo a ool b i paie i i poeedig o a eeially idepedeoe Plaig fo bee defied ad wowile a goal abeoe ge if we ae o avoid e eologial aeove ad aeeology oe oe e eva of a iead of i ae 4Mai Heidegge i Diouse o Thiig ae a e poe a

oved fa beyod ay poible epeal o oe a foeee e adialage o oe eologial advae will ove fae ad faead a eve be opped all aea of i exiee a will be eiled eve oe igly by e foe of eology ee foewi eveywee ad evey ie lai eai dag alog pead ipoe po a de e fo of oe eal oivae ooeee foe ave oved log ie beyod i will ad aveogow i apaiy fo deiio5

Uil eely oe f i o wee e exlive popey of aall ege of e aadei oiy dig e la eveal

yea e idea of aooo eology a gaied oideablepbli aeio Obevaio o e effe a eology i o ofool ae ooly fod i boo aop e beelle li i eUied Sae e ae opiio a beoe a oeoe of e pop·la ovee a ae fowad de e abigo bae ofeology e oio i aboad i e lad a e foe of eology ad oodiy allowed o ave ei ow way wiogidae o ool of ieveig vale ave eaed a le wi ipofodly oile o life6 eologial iovaio i i aid abeoe o apid ad pevaive a i eae o deoy all veige ofpeaee oiiy ad eiy i ode oiey eology

toomy Mey 5

be aed if e aeleaive i o be bog deool 7

e ewly eege voge of e idea ae i lea a if oigele aooo eology a eog iiive plaibiliy oad a a oveie eepale fo a o of oepoay axieie i eoi Albe Spee Hile' iie of aae ad wapodio fid i poible o old p away eology a a paialexe fo e babai of e ai egie e iial eve ofoe yea Spee obeve wee o oly a ogow of Hile'peoaliy e exe of e ie wa alo de o e fa aHile wa e fi o be able o eploy e iplee of eologyo liply ie8 oig fo i eioy a e ebeg

ial Spee oie e oe eologial e wold beoe egeae i e dage A e foe iie i age of a iglydeveloped aae eooy i i y la dy o ae A ew geawa will ed wi e deio of a le ad iviliaioee i oig o op leaed eology ad iee fo opleig i wo o deoyg a wi i a o eibly beg i iwa9

Give e ioial oex i wi i ad Spee' aepedapology doe o eed e ieeig fa i oeele a opelia a defee od be offeed a all ad a i a bee aeped

o willigly by Spee' Eopea ad Aeia adiee Soeig weall dead abo e weie ey ae e plea of AlbeSpee ad Adolf Eia a a ble vii of aoooeology a ielligible albei ill ifiable exe

diio e e utoo teh �Qy_deood o be E_gala lo aloepio ad obevaio o e effe a eg oeow o of ool by a agy-- M o

_io e o diel eaooo tehique. Aodig o Elll _ei a be auoQ-o; i a fa

ivo:

wo l wi �b� i owlw;-

n di 1 1 i wil fe


13/199

Autonomous Technology 16

here-.


14/199

onomos Tenology 8

lf 19 o wo wold way dy uopa pobl a mod ology off mad

Fo dff ao Symou Mlma oo ofauoomou mlay ology etago Capitalim I y da a b oly a polal u d a "I am uay obv"abou o vwg ma a apv of wapo alfdfag mod of udadg a dff fom dfyg op doma ad mod of ool M may bapv bu oly of o m op of ma gp of aFa wapo ym a a vly lmg ff o ouably o do ayg abou f a dd20

Cm of o ma a ga dal of I would b f

o adm a appoa I av o odd ad a xlud mu a mpoa polal ad oal lf I would aloallow a a om vy al dag vw a ologyad a auoomou Su oo av pa ommaompad ploop w w vully amod ad vfa2 1

My ufao ag p appoa a a omgfa quo a mo obvou way of alg aboupol ad ology av b po o go O way of ag u fom oalm o bg by loog a m

mo vvd oul Fom ympomology w a mov owad aaoabl dago Mu of wg o pol ad ologyoday bg w aoal o g ad mov fom gadually owad dbl p of auoomou ology Myo o wo bawad o a la dffly op of avg a a mo llg dao

May ad LOu ag po fa a da of auoomou ologya uly gad ad may wdly paad ba of

lag Fom bgg of uy o p

tonomy n Mte 19

day oo a pplxd l of oma Calyl CalD Ralp Waldo Emo aal Hawo Hy oau

Ma wa Hy Adam Jo Ru Wllam Mo E E Cummg Gog Owll Mal Duamp ad Ku Vogu o amju a fw I o dfo o ao auoomou ology owa gfa adplay ypo aual ad oal a oualm ad v al pal mlv

u ow a b? How a w aou fo fa a o mayllg po av mbad a da o ag ad ully?

ommo lm oo of d o o mu a flg of ambval abou mod o v a lo of fa

l bw ologal dvlopm ad uma pog I a a a may of ou mo fudamal xpao abou al o log old Commo ad adoalvw of do o alway povd a labl gud o ou vydayxp w ologal poma I po of auoomou ology a b pd a g of a dod of md a ollap of a oday po of vw L u xam adoal ppv ad ou p vulably

oluo a omg "ou of ool g o oly ofa a w xp a oug o b ool f

pla o all ulu fo xampl a ou a ablyo ool g a ay pqu of uma uvval a popl wo av lvd ad popd ud blf a a amoy o bf au would povd fo d W ulu owv a log blvd a oudx ad advam dpd upo ably o mapula uma of maal wold I a p a may av alldFaua w blv a ool pobl ad a w mu v fo A a bo ay ad obl ap of W ldy wv o ola vaabl odo of vom ad mapula m fo ou ow advaag


15/199


16/199


17/199

toomo hoogy 22

a diret ompario betwee the power ad goal of hi ew ieead the power ad goal of politi. He ee to demotrate that

ietifi atio i imilar to politial atio bt that it i i all wayperior.ao begi by otig that former age had alway awarded divie

hoor to thoe who made importat dioverie or who were"athor o f ivetio Pero of thi tripe were eteemed far above"thoe who did good ervie i the tate (h a foder of itie adempire egilator avior of their otry from edred evlqeller of tyraie ad the lie). To politial ator former agedereed o higher hoor tha heroi ad righty o. "For the beefit of dioverie may exted to the whole rae of ma ivil beefit

oly to partilar plae the latter ot beyod a few age the formerthrogh all time. 26 ao ote that iee ad the patial arthad reetly give the world three ivetiothe pritig pre gpowder ad the magetthat made all politial aomplihmet paleby ompario. " For thee three have haged the whole fae ad tateof thig throghot the world . . iofar that o empire o et otar eem o have exerted greater power ad iflee i hma affairtha thee mehaial dioveri 27

The poit of the matter i ot merely that the atio of iee adtehology brig a greater good over a greater area for a loger period

of time it i alo perior to politi beae it provde a more obleotlet for ma' aggreive imple. ere ao ditigihe betweethree id of ambitio i maid two of whih are politial Thefirt he ay "i of thoe who deire to exted their w power itheir ative otry whih id i vlgar ad degeerate The eod iof thoe who labor to exted the power of ther otry ad itdomiio amog me Thi ertaily ha more digity thogh ot leovetoe. 28 The third id of ambitio however avoid theemral pitfal. f a ma edeavr t etablih ad exted the pwerad domiio f the hma rae itelf over the ivere hi ambitio(if ambitio it a be alled i withot dobt both a more wholeomethig ad a more oble tha the other two. ao leave o dobt a

toomy Mtey 23

to how domiio of thi ort will be etablihed ow the empire ofma over thig deped wholly o the art ad iee. For we aot

ommad atre exept by obeyig her.29

What wa previoly a poitial impethe deire for power o-qet ad empirehall ow beme the gidig impe of ieead tehology. Me hall obey atre for a log a it tae to learher eret. They will the ommad her a tyrat oe ommadedtheir politial bjet ao learly mea to ay that thi hage willbeefit the hma rae ot oly beae iee will improve materialwellbeig bt alo beae thoe who rave power wil tr to morewholeome prit. Apparetly a ambitio ma mt bjgateomethig. Ad atre lie hma beig will ot mid bjga-

tioThe e of ao program a a way of owig a a viio fthe world ad a a way of operatig o material reality i perhap themot importat of al aompihmet i moder hitory The term ofthi aomplihmet to a arge extet defie the oditio derwhih we live. Thi i all te more extraordiary give the fat hat iearlier ambitio attempt iee ad ietifi tehology had oftebee petalar failre. Chaer' "Cao' Yeo ma' Tale forexampe we read of a ma (poibly Chaer himelf who fritteredaway hi forte o a ietifi art ahemy whih ever broght him

ay beefit at allWhe we had fixed a plae to exerieOr eteri raft we all looed wieOr term were highly tehial ad qait blew the fire p til fit to fait. . .Ad how d'yo thi? t happe lie a othere' a exploio ad goodbye the potThee metal are o vioet whe they plitOr very wall a are tad p to it. . . Athogh the devil did't how hi fae

'm pretty re he wa abot the plae Hell itelf where e i lord ad mater


18/199

omo Thoo 24

Th old t b o ao i diatTha wh o pot xplodd a I told yo ;All thi thy'v b lt dow ad tat to old yo

My fa i wa ad wa a lad loo;If yo ty i yo'll b boght to boo My y a blad with wo o ppaatioThat all th good yo gt fo tatatioThat lippy i tippd dow o baThat I' woth othig h o aywh 30

optt fblig ad podtiv th i of Cha'a wa a wat of ti ad oy Up to ad ildig th vtth ty i a ad with th qay of th

olt Ev th gatt figof th itifi voltio till dabbldi th agial at Kpl wa a ofd atolog; wto tidhi had at alhy Th tiph of th aoia odl of ipatilaly i it thologial appliatio did ot ta pla ovight It poi log pdd it flfilt; it advtit adadva a log bfo it ability to dliv Si iwto' ti wa abl to aot fo h thig a th otio of thplat bt it had littl dit fft o th patial lif of oity 31Th thia of Didot dAlbt ad th atho of th E-lopedi fo i ad th haial at wa o a potio of

thig to o tha a aliti at of th xitig tat of affaiTh o of hitoia of i ad thology i that th wddig of i ad thi a oly i th lat itth tywith ot of th pogy of thi ath aivig i th twtith 32

Si th dd fit a a way of owig ad a a viio ofth wold Oly lat a itifi thology did it tiph a aa of otol ad aiplatio I th d howv it ltiat t b aotd to it flfillt of aoia abitioth dlivy of pow Oth od of owig hav b abl to giva itlligibl ytati athtially plaig pit of ality If

i had oly b abl to aoplih thi ad othig o it ilily that it wold hav b pplatd by yt aoth philoophy of

toom Mt 2

iqiy t i th Wt at lat th tt i ot o h wh do oow? o how eleg is or ierpreio of worldl pheome?bt ath wh o ll do? Thi i th oliv fato thao that fo ita oial i ha v flly tablihd itdtial i th hall of i Si d ov ival way ofowigpoty ligio at philoophy th olt ot by it abilitto illiat ot v by it ability to ogai owldg bt by itability to pod olid lt Spa itit dotat that thyow i thy a abl to fly a a to th oo ad ba Phyiitt ow i thy a abl to pod atoi wapo I th lataalyi th popla poof of i i thology Thi i why woid ao pophti Paal qait

O ipota of th ida of atooo thology i that it tot to db th da o f aty by howig that it ha go awyi pati I od platio abot thi o thi aftaoth ha fod it ay to qtio th fdatal optio ad blif that aho th way Wt thi abot thilatiohip to thologial poibiliti I pifi o fid a t ofotio o thoght altogth liabl whih hav bo tagt ofwidpad dot Thy a:h me ow bes wh he hemselves hve mde;

h he higs me me re der heir firm orol

h eholog is esseill erl mes o ed; he beefior hrm i brigs depeds o how me se i

I th ovtioal pptiv wo of thology a o thatai; thy a dobly tai Si ha big a both th dig ad a of thi atio thy hav pi owldg ofthi ottio Thy ow xatly how thig a pt togth adhow thy a b ta apat I additio wo of thology atai i th that thi ottio dpd o th poio ofvalid owldg ith fo da xpi o fo a appopiat i I hi Mephsis Aitotl xplai that eh (at

o "aft i pio to xpi ba it obi thtwo way of owig "At i bo wh ot of th ay bit of


19/199

Ai!IU" '�chnology 26

ation deived fo experience there eeges a gasp of these si

larities in view of which they ae a unified whole. We believe that

knowing and undestanding characterize art ather than expeience . . . .

Men of expeience discen the fact that, but not the eason why';

wheeas expets know the eason why and explanation. 33 Aistole

conjectues that the first man to invent an at o caft was looked upon

with wonde by his fellows, not only because thee was something use

ful in his discoveies but also because the othes thought him wise and

supeior. Maste workes ae pesuably wise not eely because they

ae pactical but because they have easons and can explain what they

are doing

That which en have ade, they also control. is is comon

sense. Contol, afte all, i s pat of the very design of technical ceations.Apparatus and techniques ae devised with definite puposes in mind.

Through conscious anipulation of such means, men ae able to achieve

ends established in advance. While it ay equie a peiod of tie to

find instruents that will be effective, once discovered they are no

longe a souce of difficulty. Technical eans are, by their vey nature,

ee tools subject to the will of whoever employs them. e fotui

tous combination of cetainty and contol in technical activity has held

a geat fascination fo politics. Many histoical fos of statecaft and

almost all conceptions of utopia est on an iplicitly technological

odel. When conditions of the political wold seem uncertain unmanageable, o othewise undesirable, technique and atifice offer a

tantalizing solution. Though conscious resort to atificial means it is

conceivably possible in the ionic wods of Osca Wilde, to shield our

selves fom the sodid peils of actual existence f one could reake

the wold, if one could fashion the conditions of eality to suit a pe

conceived design, both cetainty and contol would be assued. This is

the solution Thomas Hobbes offeed: Fo by at is created that geat

LEVIATHAN called a COMMONWEALTH, o STATE," a political oder

that would be oe pefect since it was built fom the ground up on

entirely ational pinciples. In one anifestation or another, this is also

Autonomy and Masery 27

the pescription pesented us by Plato, SaintSimon, Owen, Mdison,

and contepoary systems analysis.34

Technology is essentially neutral. In the conventional way of think

ing, the oral context appopriate to technical attes is entiely clear.

Technology is nothing oe than a tool. What en do with tools, of

couse, is to use them. The tool itself is copletely neutral-a eans

to the desied end. Whether the end accoplished is wise o unwise,

beautiful o hideous, beneficial or harmful, must be determined inde

pendently of the instruent eployed. This judgent also holds tuefo the wondeful developments in modern technology. The new

devices, regardless of their size and coplexity, ae still tools that may

be used eithe well o pooly In the words of H. L. Niebug, "Science

and technology are essentially aoal and thei uses abivalent. Theimiacle has increased equally the scale of both good and evi. 35 The

neutality of technology and the tooluse ethic ae tuiss stiving to

become bromides. This has not been an obstacle to the dozens of au

thos in the last decade or so who have uneathed these ideas and pe

sented them as statling insights into the modern condition. In an

attept to coect the position that technology is intinsically benevo

lent while avoiding the notion that it is intrinsically evil, these authors

have ediscovered the obvious.36

The thee propositions I have outlined here are conspicuously eason

able. They ae basic to any understandig of human mastey throughtechnology Yet the fact remains that much of moden discussion sug

gests that these ideas are no longer copletely valid given the condi

tions of advanced technics.

How thorughly do people know thei own technology? This is an

ambiguous question and·could be answered in any nuber of ways. But

if it means, How much does an individual undestand about the total

range of technologies that affect his o her life? the answe is clear.

Very little Technicl knowledge in modern society is so highly spe

cialized and diffused that ost people can gasp only a minute segment

The rest of the technical activity and apparatus that suround each


20/199


21/199

tnm Tehly 0

an ends one often fnds tat a ral eleent n te ornal

noton as een lost and tat soetn pelar as een added n ts

plae. Te deternant of ts strane addton (w soon eoes

part of te lfe proess} s sally a reqreent of te tenqe e

ployed. Often, ten or tee s annoned wen oservers pereve

tat " te tools are ore tan tools. Tenoloal netralty s

a yt.

In sary, te loss of astery anfests tself n a dene of or

alty to know to de, or to ontrol or tenal eans. It s n ts

eneral wann of ntelletal, oral and poltal oand tat deas

of atonoos tenoloy fnd ter ass. Tre, te aknowledent

of tese syptos s neter nfor nor nversal. Persons wo feel

sffently epowered y te tenal systes of or te wll fnds oservatons of lttle elp My ope s tat tere wll e at least a

few to wo te tee akes sense and wo wll want to onsder t

frter. Tese, I sspet, wll e persons wo ave already n soe way

experened frstraton n ter attepts to ake odern tens

ntellle or aessle n ter own lves. Peraps even te ost on

fdent and est served wll fnd reason to ponder te staton anew. I

ave never et any rearat or expert wo dd not oplan of av

n no real power or wo ve any evdene of knon otsde

s or er own tenal fnton. It s for tose wo an nderstand

te odern snfane of Heraltss ax, "Tey are estanedfro tat wt w tey ave ost onstant nterorse, tat ynvestatons are ntended.

Autonoy nd Anii

One entrane to te prole, a knd of prevew of te terrtory aead,

s to note ow t as een represented n works of art. Drn te last

entry and a alf, te dea of atonoos tenoloy as fond ex

presson n ontless novels poes, plays and oton ptres. Stand

ard to s treatents as een a ode of syols tat portrays

tenoloal artfe as soetn lterally alve. Tro soe straneproess a anade reatre, ane, or advaned syste takes on

tmy n Mtey

lfelke propertesonsosness, wll, and spontaneos otonw

plae t n reellon aanst te an onty.

An asn reent exaple of ts enre s a fl, Colossus: h

orbi Proct w sows a rllant sentst (ovosly odeled onte fre of Werner von Bran) and a leral tenorat U.S. Pres

dent (wo ears a strkn reselane to Jon F. Kennedy} plottn to

a and dsr ter own ant opter, w as taken ontrol of

te eonoy and entre defense syste of te Unted States and teSovet Unon. At te onlson of te ove te opter nteredes,

telln te apless ans t as een ased y ter fln efforts

t tat te ae as one on lon eno. Colosss as te onspra

tors, nldn s reator Dr. Forn, loked pTe often vlar Hollywood se of tenoloal ans sold

not osre te fat tat aes of ts knd ave een sefl syols

for artsts and wrters onerned wt te platons of odern te

nal artfe. Te root dea of orse s notn new. It s orns are as

od te tale of Proetes fasonn te an rae fro lay, te

story of an's reaton n Gsis, or any ner of slar aonts n

world relons tat dept te an spees as an atonoos art

fat of te ods. In ts reard te noton of a lvn tenoloy erely

reaptlates te yts of or own ennnste reellon and fall of

anand te ensn arvest of troles. In s wrtns as Mary

Selley's rkst (w I sall dsss n soe detal later) andSael Btler's Erwho, te yt was owerflly reorn n Western

tot Nneteententry wrters were fasnated y te posslty

tat sentsts and nventors wold atally seed n reatn artfal

lfe. Tat prospet was portant n ts own rt, t t was also sy

ol of te rowt of ndstral soety as well as ore as dleas

nvolved n any reatve at.8 Artsts ave always nderstood tat terworks n a tre sense ave a lfe of ter own ot drn and after

ter reaton. Wen te advane of sene and ndstral tenoloy

eae well known, artsts were aon te frst to spelate on te

possltes for a try perfet ndependent and lfelke work ofan faraton.


22/199


23/199

Atonomous Technology 34

creepy, don't it, Doctor, watcing tem keys go up and down? You canalmost see a gost sitting tere playing is eart out.

Paul twisted free and urried out to is car.43

Vonnegut's anecdote provdes a glimpse of te crucial statement and

ultimate conclusion of te writings on tecnological animism. If one

asks, Were did tis strange life in te apparatus come from? Wat is its

real origin? te answer is clear: it is uman life transferred into artifice.

Men export teir own vital powerste ability to move to experience,

to work, and to tinkinto te devices of teir making. Tey ten ex

perience tis life as someting removed and· alien, someting tat comes

back at tem from anoter direction. In tis way te experience of

mens lives becomes entirely vicarious. And often it is full of sur

prises. In Hawtornes story, a young woman demands of Owen Warland, "Tell me if it be alive, or weter you created it. 44 Te inventor

replies tat bot conclusions about te butterfly are equally true

"Alive? Yes, Annie it may well be said to possess life for it as ab-

sorbed my own being into itself 45

Muc of te writing in tis tradition suggests tat tere is a law of

te preservation of life at work, muc like te law of te preservatio

of energy. Te transference is absolute; insofar as me pour teir own

life into te apparatus, teir own vitality is tat muc diminised. Te

transference of uman energy and caracter leaves men empty,

altoug tey may never acknowledge te void Tis is te problemtat te symbolism of suc stories presents to us, one tat is readily

applicable to te dilemmas of autonomous tecnology Man now lives

in and through tecnical creations. Te peculiar properties we may

notice in tese creations are not te result of some spontateous genera

tion (te mistake of vulgar science ficton films) Wat we see is uman

life separated from te directing, controlling positive agency of uman

minds and souls.

Tis state of affairs would be of small interest if it ad to do only

wit individal scientists and inventors and teir works. In te most

skillful statements of te teme, te specific piece of apparatus represents a muc more general condition: te pligt of te uan race in

utonomy and Mastery 35

tcnological society. Tis is clearly te case in E M. Forsters classic

story, Te Macine Stops, wic describes a civilization livng far

beneat te surface of te eart, completely dependent upon a large,

beneficent Macine. Te Macine is bot powerful and perfect, based

on te principle tat tings must be brougt to people, rater tan

people brougt to tings. Tose funny old days, wen men went for

cange of air instead of canging te air in teir rooms !46 Te uman

beings, wo are so well taken care of tat tey ave srunk in bot

mental and pysical capacity, obey te Macine's every requirement.

Only one person, a young man named Kuno, is perceptive enoug to

discern wat as appened. He crawls to te surface of te eart

throug one of te Macine's vomitories and discovers tat te land

above is beautiful and tat one does not ave to rely on te Macine

to breate. Wen e returns to te caverns below e tells is friends

"Cannot you see . . tat it is we tat are dying, and tat down ere

te only ting tat really lives is te Macine? We created te Macine,

to do our will, but we cannot make it do our will now. It as robbed us

of te sense of space and te sense of touc ; it as blurred every uman

relation and narrowed don love to a carnal act, it as paralyzed or

bodies and our wills, and now it compels us to worsip it. Te Macine

developsbut not on our lines. Te Macine proceedsbut not to our

goal. We exist only as te blood corpuscles tat course troug its ar-

teres, and if it could work witout us, it would let us die.

4

Writing in te late 1 920s, Forster avoids te tendency of is time

to see te future of tecnological society in terms of mecanization,

te ordering of all social functions in monotonous, clocklike patterns

Instead, e is concerned wit te rise of a patological dependence tat

drains from men all activity and spirit. Te life of te wole society is

transferred into te mecanism. Wile te Macine retrns wat it as

received in te form of "service, it retains te living essence tat gave

tis "service its original meaning Here is a civilization in wic so-

pisticated devices will tink for people, work for people, improve teir

own workings for people, and in general provide for all of peoplesneeds. Te price paid for tis wonder is tat uman beings can no


24/199


25/199

tms Telgy 38

fallen nto a ondton n whh the eans of lfe feedo and enh

ent had evolved nto foes of deadaton slavey and death. They

had eoe alenated fo podtve lfe fo the podts tools

lao and the fellows. No lone was the laoe ale to eale enne han potental thoh selfatvty. ao had eoe a

ddey whh st aely povded fo the neesstes of lfe. Man the

laoe ontned to po hs hanty nto an endless sesson of

podts t ths poess dd not extend hs powe o satsfaton.

Rathe t daned lfes essene. "The oe the woke expends hself

n wok the oe powefl eoes the wold of oets whh he

eates n fae of hself the pooe he eoes n hs nne lfe and

the ess he elons to hself. It s st the sae as n elon. The

oe of hself an atttes to God the less he has left n hself.The woke pts hs lfe nto the oet and hs lfe then elons no

lone to hself t to the oet. The eate hs atvty theefoethe less he possesses. What s eoded n the podt of hs lao

s no lone hs own. The eate the podt s theefoe the e he

s dnshed. 6

What ths staton eant n M. Foste's stoy t also snfes

to Max. The alenated tansfeene of lfe podes a stane phenoe

non n whh an's own en s expeened as soethn foen

eoved ndependent and theatenn. "The alenaton of the woe

n hs podt eans not only that hs lao eoes an oetasses an extenal exstene t that t exsts ndependently otsde

hself and alen to h and that t stands to h as an atonoos

powe. The lfe whh he has ven to the oet sets tself aanst h

as an alen and hostle foe. 7 Unde the ondtons of aptalst teh

noloy en ae no lone the astes of the tools podts o po

dtve soal elatonshps. Nethe do any of these thns eneft

the. Qte the ontay the wokes ae wose off than efoe. The

on of the tehna avels of the ndstal evolton has dven

the to the lowest pont of han exstene. "By eans of ts on-

veson nto an atoato the nstent of lao onfonts thelaoe dn the lao poess n the shape of aptal of dead

tmy d Mstey 39

labou, that dominates , and pumps dy, living labou powe. 58 Describing this s tate of affairs, Marx formulates what amounts to the first coheent theoy of autonomous technology. His wods in The German

Ideology effectively summarize much of what is problematic for us in this inquiy: "This cystallization o f social activity, this consolidationof what we ouselves poduce into an objective powe above us, grow-ing out of ou contol, thwating ou expectations, binging to naughtou calculations, is one of the chief factos in histoicl development uptll now9

Max eleved that an old aheve fee and podtve soal

exstene only y oveon the alenaton of lao. Ths step wold

of ose oe thoh a evolton and the advent of a onst

soal ode an potant a of whh wold e to leate teh

noloy fo ts tly han fnton and to ake t possle that

patholoal foatons of the past old eve eestalshed. "The

ealty whh ons s eatn s pesely the eal ass fo en

den t possle that anythn shold exst ndependently of nd

vdals n so fa as thns ae only a podt of peedn nteose

of ndvdals theselves. 6 "Only at ths stae does selfatvty

onde wth ateal lfe whh oesponds to the developent of

ndvdals nto oplete ndvdals and the astn off of a ll natal

ltatons 6 When ths s aheved the ystfaton of atonoos

tehnoloy wll vansh. No lone wll en e onfonted wth an"alen and hostle foe ade p of the own podts. "The lfe

poess of soety .e. the poess of ateal podton wll not

shed ts ystal vel ntl t eoes the podt of feely assoated

en and s onsosly elated y the n aodane wth a settled

pan.· 62

Bt one shold not o too fa n atttn a theoy of atonoos

tehnoloy to Kal Max. Althoh he pesents a welldeveloped on

epton of tehnoloy ot of ontol n the ontext of hs wok as a

whole t s eely an ntelde n the dst of a h lae a

ent.63 Fo Max the alenaton of lao and the appeaane of aassve lfedann ndstal ehans annot e onsdeed


26/199


27/199

Ch 2 E f C 4


28/199

Chapter 2Engines of Change

Followng hs vst to the Great Exposton n Pars n 1900, HenryAdams, the Amercan hstoran and phlosopher, reported a pecularfascnaton wth one part of the exhbtthe hall of dynamos n hsEducation, Adams explans that hs frend and gude through the exposton, Samuel Langley, was able to see the machnes n ther mostmundane aspect. To hm the ynamo was but an ngenous channelfor conveyng the heat latent n a few tons o _Q__add n adrty engne house car fully out of sight." � o ms, til_


29/199

uonomous chnoogy 46

prvous chaptr human autonomy and th loss of mastry. wsMumford bgan hs carr by nqurng nto purly factual aspcts otchnologcal chang and ndd wth th quston, What os tch-

nology hav to do wth ot bng fr? It sms to m that ths, rathrthan purly mprcal or hstorcal opcs, s h urgnt subct atprsnt.

Mou a MovLt us bgn by notcng a curous paradox that plagus almost alldscussons of tchnologcal chang, both our ordnary commonsnsvw o f thngs and mor prcs scholarly conceptons On th on handw ncountr th da that tchnologcal developm� gos forwardvtually of ts own nrta, rssts any lmtaton, and has th charactr

of a slfpropllng, slfsustanng, nluctabl flow. On th ohr handar argumnts to th ffct that human bngs hav full, conscouschoc n th mattr and that thy ar rsponsbl for chocs mad atach stp n th squnc of chang}h rony s that both ponts ofvw ar ntrtand smultanously wth lt l awarnss of th contradcton such blfs contan. r s vn a crtan pr takn nmbracng both postons wthn a sngl dology of tchnologcalchang.

Sgns of th paradox mrg from th ways n whch hstorcaldvlopmnts of th past two cnturs ar normally rprsntd orsvral gnratons, t has bn commonplac to s tchnologcaladvanc n th contxt of a vast worldtransformng procssndus-tralzaton, mchanzaton, ratonalzaton, modrnzaton, growth, or"progrss. "Industralzaton, untl rcntly th most popular labl,ponts to th rang of adaptatons n socal, tchncal, and conomcstructur that socts hav undrgon n ordr to support th larg-scal producton of matral goods A mor fashonabl trm at pr snt,"modrnzaton, attmpts to corrct for th narrownss of th ndustral concpt n lght of twntthcntury hstory. In ssnc t mans

"all of thos changs that dstngush th odrn world fro trad-tonal socts. Durng th last two or thr cnturs thr has bn

Engnes of ange 47

an astoundng ncras n th scop, varty, sophstcaton, and ffc-tvnss of mans scntfc an tchnologcal actvty. As th knowldgof physcal ralty has xpandd, n hav bn abl to xplot

mmns nw sourcs of nrgy and atrals and to dvs largr, morcomplx, mor productv forms of anufacturng, agrcultur, trans-portaton, comuncaton, mdcn, and warfar. Along wth thsdvlopmnts hav com a vast array of socal, conoc, dmographc,and poltcal changs whch brng a whol nw charactr to cvlzdlfncrasd prcapta ncom, longr lf xpctancy, rapd xpan-son of world populaton, rs n ltracy, prolfraton of socal rols,and so on. 5

In most wrtngs on "ndustralzaton, "modrnzaton, and "d-vlopmnt, th lmnt of tchnologcal chang s fod to b socrucal to th orgns an contnud formaton of vrythng modrnthat t s ncludd n th dfnton of th procss undr study. W. W.Rostow spaks of tchnologcal constrants that xstd n "prNwtonan tms and assrts that whn modrn tchnology waslackng, socal chang was lackng as wll. "Ultmatly, h obsrvs,"ths constrants, opratng n cmplx ways, wr judgd th caus ofth cyclcal pattrns typcal of th hstory of tradtonal socts. 6

But wth th comng of Nwtonan scnc and th ndustral rvoluton, a pattrn of lnar growth was stablshd that contnus to thprsnt day. In rspons to th dvlopmnts n scnc an tchncs,th nsttutons of socty and poltcs altr thr structur n ordr to"absorb th nw tchnologs. "Poltcal dvlopmnt, Rostow tllsus, "conssts n th laboraton of nw and mor complx fors of poltcs and govrnmnt as socts rstructur thmslvs so as to absorbprogrssvly th stock and flow of modrn tchnology. 7 In WlbrtE Moor's book ocil Chge, th pont s vn mor fnt: "Whats nvolvd n modrnzaton s a total transformaton of a tradtonalor prmodrn soct nto th typs of tchnology and assocatdsocal organzaton that charactrz th advancd,' conomcally

prosprous, and rlatvly poltcally stabl natons of th WstrnWorl. 8


30/199


31/199

Aonomos Technology 50

ndstralzaton modrnzaton and th othr "zatons ar smlar tosch physcal procsss as onzaton n th sns that onc ndrwaythy contn on thr own wth a knd of nblt ncssty or nrta.

o a crtan xtnt ths connotaton s mrly a qrk n or langag.In Englsh th "z vrbs do mply an actv wllng sbct whlth "zaton nons sggst a slfgnratng rocss. In many nstan-cs howvr conomsts and hstorans wsh to mantan that th"zaton' thy ar stdyng s n fact a phnomnon sui grisnrtal and slfsstanng. In Davd andss xcllnt work on tchnologcal chang h boud omthus w fnd statmnts of thfollowng sort "It was th Indstral Rvolton that ntatd a cmlatv s lfsstanng advanc n tchnology whos rprcssons woldb flt n all aspcts of conomc lf. 3 hs of cors s smlar to

Rostow's maor pont. Aftr th "takoff ndstral socts ntr aprod of sstand dvlopmnt n whch growth fds pon growthn an vrxpandng vracclratng pward crv.

Bt thr s mor hr than st th convnnc of a mtaphor.In dscrbng th cors of tchncal and socal hstory scholars oftncommt thmslvs to a vw that fnds dynamsm and nrtal changapparnt n crtan obctv facts. C. E Black fnds th mpact ofmodrnzaton to b a nvrsal phnomnon. "h procss o adapta-ton h obsrvs "had ts orgns and ntal nflnc n th soctsof Wst rn Erop bt n th nntnth and twntth cntrs thschangs hav bn xtndd to all othr socts and hav rsltd na world wd transformaton affctng all hman rlatonhsps. 4 hprocss s commonly hld to b rrvrsbl n th sns that thchangs hav takn s so far from th forms of tradtonal socty thatt wold b mpossbl vr to mov n that drcton agan. hsconcpt s mad abndantly clar n Clark Krrs Idustrilism dIdustril M Accordng to Krr "An argmnt aganst ndstral-zaton n gnral s now tl for th world has frmly st ts factoward th ndstral socty and thr s no trnng back. 5 h

changs smlarly ar hld to b nvtabl n th spcl sns that nwforms of tchnology and socal lf mst ncssarly rplac oldr

Engnes of Change 51

mods. h tchncs and socal confgratons of formr tms ardoomd and smply cannot srvv. "Onc ndr way Krr obsrvs"th logc of ndstralzaton sts n moton many trnds whch do

mor or lss volnc to th tradtonal prndstral socty. 16 honly altrnatv s to yld to ths trnds and oby thr mpratvsWtnss th fat of th rlctant ndstral workrs: "h dynamcscnc and tchnology of th ndstral socty crats frqntchangs n th sklls rsponsblts and occpatons of th workforc . . . . h work forc s confrontd wth rpatd obct lssons ofth gnral ftlty of fghtng ths changs and coms to b rconcld by and larg to rpatd changs n ways of arnng a lvng.1

Conclsons of ths sort ar sally o ffrd as prly factal mattrs.h hstorans conomsts and poltcal scntsts who tll s of sch

thngs ar mrly rportng an obctv stat of affars that w canvrfy for orslvs. At th sam tm thr s as Hnry Adams woldhav xpctd a tndncy to adopt a worshpfl atttd toward thzatons and thr ggrnatlk advanc. On bgns to s thprocss as an ovrwhlmngly powrfl dstny wth th moral oblgatons of srvc and obdnc. In ths lght Davd Aptr compars thmodrn condton to th plght of Ssyphs n Cams fabl "Ssyphsrtrnng agan and agan to roll hs rock p th hll may appar ab-srd. Yt on ach occason h s happy. How odd that sms And howlk or own tms. h work of modrnzaton s th brdn of thsag. It s or rock. 8 Anothr stdnt of modrnzaton MyronWnr s vn mor dfnt n ths rgard. "Socal scntsts hassrts "ar concrnd not only wth how modrnzaton taks placbt also wth how t can b acclratd. 9 acd wth a world ndrgong many comprhnsv changs th socal scntst mst askhmslf "What ar ths changs how ar thy rlatd how do wstdy thm how can ths changs b hastnd?20 h obctvntral dsposton of socal scnc apparntly vanshs whn t ncontrs th nvtabl. On mst affrm t and lnd a hand. It s aftr

all or rock.Wth th artclaton of sch thms th dstncton btwn ortho

A T h l 52 E i f Ch 53


32/199

Autonomous Technology 52

dox scho larship and the literature of autonomous technology begins to

blur Arrayed together in a list, these attributes of modernization

dynamism, universality, pervasiveness, irreversibility, inevitability, and

positive destinycover most of what Ellul includes in his account of the

proliferation of la technique. While Ellul s treatment goes much further

than normal social science in seeing the development as monistic and

selfaugmenting, the general implication of the more prudent studies

is not that much different The modern age is portrayed as a time in

which individuals, groups, nations, and whole cultures are caught up in

a process of technological transformation which affects every sphere of

life and which pulverizes preexisting social alternatives

But, surely, we feel there must be some important differences be

tween the views of critics of technological society and those of scholars

of modernization At the very least, he two points of view give differ-ent impressions when we read them

One obvious issue seprating the two perspectivesan, lamentably,

the one most frequently commented uponis whether the direction of

change has been a blessing or curse for mankind. As noted above, most

students of development and modernization hold that the process is

undeniably beneficent While they admit that technological advance

has frequently brought disaster to persons caught between the old ways

and the new, they consider these costs in human wreckage to be una

voidable and, on the whole, worthwhile21 The general condition of

mankind has improved immeasurably n contrast Ellul and oher criicsof technology question the good of the specific kinds of changes that

have occurred and argue that human freedom, dignity, and wellbeing

have not been enhanced by the historical flood tide.

While m�ch has been made of the gap between optimism and pessimism and whether a particular writer is a "prophet of hope or a

"prophet of doom, this is, I think, in the end a vacuous distinction In

much scholarship today there exists an almost compulsive need for

optimsm on ths topi f one notes that an llul or Mumford or

some other author is pessimistic in his conclusions, that becomes suf

ficient ground for dismissing anything he or she might be saying Pes

Engines of Change 53

msm, it is argued leads to inaction, which merely reinforces the

status quo22 This is somehow different from optimism, which leads to

activity within the existing aangement of things and reinforces the

status quo In the same manner of thinking one would have to do awaywith Aeschylus, Shakespeare, Melville, and Freud and much of what is

depest and most illuminating in Western literature

But setting aside the invidious matter of gloom versus hopefulness,

we encounter an issue of genuine interest Are the various paths of tech-

nological development freely and deliberately chosen, or are they in-

stead the produt of determinism, necessity, drift, or some other

historical mechanism? To what extent are man's active intelligence,

moral and political agency, and capacity for control true determinants

of technical and social progress? On the face of the matter it appears

that voies in the discussion about technological cange can easily besorted into two basic positions on this theme One side affirms freedom

and the reality of choice, while the other sees mankind as a pawn in

the indelicate hands of history Or so it seems.

Under the voluntarist way of looking at things the notion that

( peole have lost any of theirbility to me chices or exercise �ontrol over the course of technologcal change unthkable; for behd the

massive process of transformation one always finds a realm of human

motives and conscious decisions i which actors at various levels deter

mine which kinds of apparatus, technique, and organization are going

to be developed and appli d.

hind modernization are always themodernizers behind industria

zation,

the industrialists Science and

technology do not grow of their own momentum but advance through

the work of dedicated, hardworking, creative individuals who follow

highly idiosyncratic paths to their discoveries, inventions, and pro-

ductive innovations In the process of development, active, thinking

agentsJames Watt Thomas Newcomen, Thomas Watson, Alfred Sloan,

the Du Pontsare clearly present at each step, following distinctly

human ideas and interests Societies, furthermore, do not yield pas-

sively to the thrust of modernization. Political and economic actors

of the world nationstates make cnscious decisions about what kins

,


33/199

Auonomou Technology 54

of echnological developmen o encorage and hen carr o hesedecisions in invesmens, laws, sancions, sbsidies, and so on n someinsancesnineeenhcenr China, for examplehe inrodcion of

modern echnolog was acivel opposed n sch cases developmencold no begin nil a Wesern colonial power had neralized schopposiion in a colonized conr or nil an inernal poliical pheavalhad p men favorable o sch changes in posiions of leadership Themodern hisor of echnological change is, erefore, no one of ni-form growh is insead a diverse collecion of paerns rooed in spe-cific choices ha individals, grops, and naions have made for hemselves and imposed on ohers23

The volnaris posiion on sch qesions sonds eminenlreasonable having, as i does, he clear imbre of common sense Yehere is a diffic here ha is no easil dismissed, a difficl hacarries s o he paradox menioned earlier n mch of he lierareon echnological change wo radicall differen langages are spokena once, wih lile aenion o how he can boh describe he samese of evens One is he langage of a dnamic global process hamoves inelcabl forward ransforming everhing in is pah Theoher is he langage of free agenc, individal will, deliberaion, andchoice in which he pah of echnoogical advance is consciosldireced Facing his paradox, i does lile good o arge ha he

izaions are merel conveniences of speech, shorhand was of alking abo mriads of free decisions and acions We have aread seenha wriers on indsrializaion, modernizaion, and he like do wish oasser ha he process iself has a re momenm or inerial beondindividal or even col lecive will Ths, even a jdicios spokesman onindsrial developmen, Clark Kerr, is abl e o e xclaim:

This echniqe knew no geographical limis; recognized no elies orideologies Once nleashed on he world, he new echniqe kepspreading and kep advancing

is he grea ransformaionsccessf, allembag,rrevrsble

he middle of he wenfirs cenr indsazan will have

Engnes of Change 55

swep awa mos preindsrial forms of socie, excep possibl a fewodd backwaers24

To escape he dilemma here, scholars ofen resor o he view hahman freedom acall exiss wihin he limis se b he hisoricalprocess While no everhing is possible, here is mch ha can sil bechosen This perspecive enables David Aper o see modeizaion asa process of increasing complexi in hman affairs wihin which hepoli must ct emphasis added] and a he same ime o hold hao be modern means o see life as alernaives, preferences andchoices 25 Rosow, in h e same vein, sees he process of echnologicaldevelopmen as a grand saging grond, which gives shape o all ofsocies mos imporan decisions Wh he akeoff and drive o

echnological mari he process of indsrializaion iself becomeshe cener of poliics 26 The efficien absorion of echnologies,he noes, carries wih i powerfl imperaives, social and poliical aswe as economic 27 The effec of hese developmens is o la onhe agenda a sccession of pressres o allocae he ops of govern-men in new was28 once he fndamenal agenda has been se,here i s coniderable ch oice abo he specific socioechnical forms hedevelopmen will ake

To Elll, Marcse, Mmford, and oher criics of he echnologicalsocie, argmens of his sripe are enirel in vain The selfconfidence

of he modeizers is merel a gise concealing a sric obedience ohe momenm of evens Under presen condiions men are no a allhe masers of echnological change; he are is prisoners Alhoghhe volnariss ma celebrae mans shrewdness and freedom, he cele-braion canno aler he condiion ha heir own heories reveal Thesho of freedom, D H awrence noed long ago, is he raling ofchains, alwas was

e criics hemselves, however, do no escape he paradox b ap-proach i in a diferen manner Mmord, Marcse, Elll, and Good-man never den hman freedom as a meaphsical or hisorical possi

bili Wha he do asser in varios was is ha wih regard o


34/199

Autonomous Tehnology 56

thnologial hang, suh possibilitis rmain unralid. h radrmust always kp in min d, Ellul autions his Amrian audin, thimpliit prsupposition that if man dos not pull himslf togthr ad

assrt himslf of if som othr unprditabl but disiv phnomnondos not intrvn), thn things will go th way I dsrib. 29 hpross of thnologial advan surgs along an inlutabl pathlargly baus human agnts hav abdiatd thir ssntial rol. hus,if th dvlopmnt of thnis in iviliation dos not prod by astrit ausandfft hain, it might as wll b doing so.

h ontraditions and tnsions w s hr ar not th xlusivproprty of philosophrs and soial thorists. hy ar, I would argu,ruial to our ommon sns viws of th mattr as wll Journalism,popular litratur, and subway onvrsations frquntly xhibit thpul that whil somon, somwhr is making disions and hois,things ar also running amok. Autonomous thnology in th sns ofthnologialhangoutofontrol is a part of th modrn xprin.Our task is to s if suh xprin an b dsribd in an intlligiblway hr ar two aras, I bliv, whr it pays us to look.

First, ar thr rtain aspts of th pross of thnial hangthat do not dpnd on th lmnts of fr will, onsious dision, oranyon's intllignt ontrol? Ar thr som important points at whihthr simply is no fftiv, guiding human will that dtrmins thfinal rsult?

Sond, is it th as, as th ritis hav argud, that th apaity forodrn mn to mak fr hois to ountr th anarhi tndnis ofthnologial dvlopmnt has itslf bn rodd by an obsssivattahmnt to th mod of thnologial hang? Obviously, in somsns hoi is always possibl ut is that nough? An odd frdomit is that in vry instan is apabl only of hoosing th nxt stp inth logi of thnial xpsion

In th stions that follow I shall draw upon a varity of ass andargumnts that ontain th substan of a thory of autonomous th

nologial hang. ar from bing xprssions of mr pssimism oranxity, th thms w will onsidrthnologial volution, dtr

Engines of Change 5

minism, drift, and th thnologial imprativpoint to som gnuindilmmas in th ways in whih modrn soitis undrgo hang, aswll as in our onptions about suh hang

Tecnlgicl vlutn

A ntral thm in th spulativ writing on thnology of th pastntury is that forms of thnis, lik forms of biologial lif, undrgoa pross of volution. With th passag of tim, nwr and mor so-phistiatd varitis of apparatus, organiation, and thniqu ris torpla oldr, simplr varitis Nw thnologis ntr into aras ofsoial xistn whr thy had not bn prviously. Just as Darwin obsrvd that th various spis of lif on th Galapagos Islands tnddto spiali and divrsify into partiular biologial nihs, so it is that

forms of thnology ontinually sprad into frsh aras of soial utilityIn both numbr and divrsity th kinds of thnial artifi availabl tohuman soitis inras. On of th first thinkrs to noti th similarity btwn biologial and thnial volution wasJ InCapital h ommnts: Darwin has arousd our intrsin th historyof natural thnology, i. ., in th formation of th organs of plants andanimals, as instrumnts of prodution for sustaining lif. Dos not thhistory of th produtiv organs of man, of organs that ar th matrialbasis of all soial organiation dsrv qual attntion? And would notsuh a history b asir to ompil, sin, as Vio says, human historydiffrs from natural history in this rspt, that w hav mad thformr, but not th lattr? 30 Marx, as w shall s latr, dfinitly didnot bliv that th volution of thnology was a slfgnrating pross ut thr hav bn many who hav ntrtaind this notion, ithras an intrsting litrary dvi or a srious proposition

As an xris in thinking, of ours, it is possibl to look upon thnologial hang as a kind of volutionary flow. Charatristi of suhappliations of Darwinian thory is a tndny to rdu th humanrol to a distintly sondary status. Sin th thory fouss upon thvolving forms of thnis in thmslvs, human bings om to b snas th mr arrirs of thnology. Eah gnration bars and xtnds


35/199

E f Ch 61


36/199

ht !lul I" loking r man, they find that the human role has

thf"a I n vl' m y oth ing?

N h wr, a more concrete level at which a variant on the

olution has considerable power. If we examine theUNN Hntific discovery and technological invention an inno-V modern history, we do encounter somethng resembling an o forms. With the passage of time both science and technicsm more specialized, diversified and complex. It is this aspect ofh process of change which Ellul labels the

"s lf-augm ntation of technu and which he sees as one :(t origins of the moder

Elul's discussion begins by pointing out that modern technical prog-rss usually comes the result of organized social effort Modern menare thoroughly convinced of the inherent superiority of technique In

every trade and profession they work in combination to devise technical improvements. echnical progress and common human effort"llul observes, come te sae tg"36 It is imant ·tehere that EJ�h he noonger any real disc enscience ai eniqe.37 Indeed, he states that what is usually calledscience has become ; thoroughly technicized that it is now aninstrument of technique By technical progress" therefore, Ellulincludes the discoveries made within the social system of science alongwith the more mundane advances in other fields of knowledge andpractice

With this view stated, Elul seeks to deny the element of voluntarismimplied by the idea of common human effort" What is important, heasserts, is not the discovery o invention of any particular individual orgroup but instead the anonymous accretion of conditions for theleap ahead38 When all the conditions concur only minimal humanintervention is needed to produce important advances It might almostbe maintained that at this stage of evolution of a technical problem,whoever attacked the problem would find the solution." 39 A consequence of this state of affairs is that the role of genius in scientific and

technical progress has shrunk to insignificance. hose who continue totalk about it are merely propagating an illusion Ellul, "!

Engnes of Change 61

is no longer the ision of a ewton which is decisive he a!tion of manifold minute details, all tendinto£; �; mbl ,is

int �

I o

T

a

r-wh

u

l

S

bles the n

d

;�

ment whih

nsform e so;h· a-mile�r ·!� s;�ctf y ti bin+_

. -�.l- h;ipor"�t aspect of self-augmentation is the continui�g increase in the scope and number of techniques. here is " Ellul ma-tains "an automatic growth (that is a growth which is not calculated,

desired, or chosen) of everthing which conces technique 42 Apparently this is a selfgenerating process technique engendes it lf.4

3

What is involved here is the fact that technical avances m d ff

spheres are often closely related at thei points of origin . A technical

discovery has repercussion in several branches of technique and notmerely in one " 44 When a new technical form appears it makes pos-sible and conditions a number o f others." 45 Ellul cites the simple ex-

ample of the internal combustion engine, which "condi tioned' the

development of the automobile, the submarine, and other devices.

In the ceaseless combination and recombination of tehnical advan-

ces, Ellul finds the following law": "Technical progess tends to act,

not according to an arithmetic, but according to a geometric progres-

sion. "4 Once again, his argument leads him to a denial of voluntarism.

What is it that determines this progression today? We an no longerargue that it is an economic or a social condition, or eduation or any

other human factor Essentially the preceding technical sit uation aloneis determinative. When a given technical· discovery occurs , it has fol-

lowedalmost of necessity certain other discoveries. Huma interention

in this succession appears only as an incidental cause, and no one mancan do this b himself But anyone who is sufficiently u todate technically can make a valid discovery which rationally folo its predecessors and rationally heralds what is to follow" 47

In a manner typical of his way of thinking, Ellul disco vers an ironic

determinism in the modern history of technology adeterminism

heavily laden with moral quandary, for men voluntarl enter and

A t m T h l 62 Engines of Chge 63


37/199

Autonomous Technolog 62

submit themselves to social processes that generate a pattern o technical advance which, in the end cannot be distinguished rom an evermultiplying causeandeect progression his movement is truly sel

determining in the sense that its direction is inherent in the structuresof echnique and nature avalable at each stage. It is s lf-g n ra i

�

�

the sense that all human motives,_decisi(ns cr l hts,

;

n

�r lced at its s ervice. Tere is nothing from the human sphere that

ierve r lmit its advanceIt is important to notice exactly what Ellul is saying here and on

what grounds he stakes his case, or he is oten reuted with pointsthat do not speak to his actual position Ellul is not saying that thereare no choices or alternatives with egard to what is or can be doneinscientic or technical development He is not saying, or example that

there is no science policy in the United States to determine whichkinds o inquiry are encouraged and unded and which are not What hedoes say is that given the whole or, as he puts it, the ensemble otechniques, such speciic choices by groups or individuals are insigniicant Speaking o the law o geometric progression he notes In arguing thus th qualiicatio must be made that this can be said only othe ensemble o techniques o the technical phenomenon, and not oany particular technique or every technique taken by itsel there apparently exist barriers that act to impede urther progress or t hetechnical phenomenon in its ensemble, however, a limitless progess isopen 48 Ellul makes it clear that his argument rests on the idea thatthe ensemble is a distinctive entity in itsel: A whole new kind ospontaneous action is taking place here and we know neither its lawsnor its ends In this sense it is possible to speak o the reality o techniquewith its own substance its own particular mode o being, and alie independent o our power o decision 49

In taking tis position, Ellul accepts the major premise o the tradition o sociology ounded bY Emile Durkheim According to Durkheim's Rules of SociologicalM�thod Society is not a mere sum o indi

viduals Rather the system ormed by their association represents a spe-ciic reality which has its own characteristics 50 In Elluls oreword to

Engines of Chge 63

the Amercan edition o The Technological Society, he explains (without mentioning Durkheim) the role o this notion in his work: o methe sociological does not consist o the addition and combination o

individual actions I believe that there is a collective reality which isindependent o the individuals5 He also calls attention to the way inwhich this view has inluenced his position on the issues o determinismand voluntarism I do not deny the existence o individual action or osome inner sphere o reedom I merely hold that these are not disceible at the most general level o analysis and that the individualsacts or ideas do not here and now exert any inuence on social, political or economc mechanisms 52

It can be argued that the autonomist assumption that is, that soiety and culture are things in themselves and must be studied as such

is the most important single premise in all o sociology.53 In this regardEllul is distinctive only in the particular source he identiies at the heartof the condition of autonomy, la technique. He is also distinctive in his desire to pit the collective process against the pretensions o the individual. Human b eings are indeed always necessary he agrees. But literally anyone can do the job, provided he is trained to it . " 54

Ellu

l' treatmen.t o technical sel-augment�tion is vulnera�le

to critici

on several pots. In general many o h1s conceptual dstctions are incorrect, and he seriously � scientifc and technical development His insistence that science andc-_ 'technique are identical simply does not wash. While it is true that the

two spheres now have much in common it is equally clear that in bothconception and actual operation they are still to a large degree separatekinds o enterprise It sems wise thereore, to maintain the basic distinction that science is a particular way o knowing or body o knowledge technology is a particular kind o practice .

It is evident also that Ellul gives a misleadingrsion

of the way inwhich discoveries and inventions take place. His treatment suggests that

t

�_go

wth of scie ·:d hn

ical knowledge is an ntir

d

d

i

�;

<

c

�

th

ly

restating the image that scientist' and technicians long held of their own work.

J

AtonomosTehnolog 64 Engnes of Change 65


38/199

Atonomos Tehnolog 64

Bt one reads the recent wrtngs o hstorans and phiosophers oscence on ths matter, one receves an entrey derent pctre In therevsed vew, the advancement o knowedge n many eds has be en ar

rom a strcty ogca, near, or cmatve process What one ndsnstead are paths marked by sgncant perods o trmo, conct,and radca shts o orentaton oday the prevang nterpretatons othe hstory o scence stress the dosyncrases encontered n the prog·ress o knowedge. 55 Stdes o technoogca nventon and nnovatonnow prse mch the same drecton. 56 At the same tme, however,E's concson abot exponenta deveopment s not at a nsaWhat s tre o scence s tre o technoogy Donad Schon con-cdes. "Both have grown exponentay and the aw governng therrate o change s the same as t has been or the ast hndred or two

hndred years. 5he seagmentaton concepton can aso be crtced or gossng

over some mportant aspects o technca deveopment tse E as-to notce any deence between nventon and technca eQta

t�

[

tha �poses theseactvtes are dentca. Most o s, however, wod want to pont otthat there s, ater a, a dstncton between what happens n the aboratory and what happens when dscoveres are pt to work n the wordat arge

hese and other obectons o the same sort can be amed at E sormaton some o them to good eect. E does have severa mportant acts wrong Hs nterpretaton o severa key sses s aty Inhs deense, t shod be noted that most o the crtcsms poparyrased aganst hs work am at reatvey sma ponts and do not cometo grps wth hs centra oncern to see the deveopment o technoogyn ts otaty We can be extremey procent at qestonng hs as-smptons and concepta dstnctons, bt we say avod tacknghs concsons or ther meanng Oten these concsons and thergenera ogc are ormdabe In ths sense mch o what passes or crt

csm o the sbstance o Es theory s more propery consderedsma potatoes qbbng abot hs methodoogy A o Es wrtng

Engnes of Change 65

s normed by a desre to avod the sterty o most odern thoght,a sterty that comes rom among other sorces) an nwngness torsk an answer to the qeston, What is t that I see bere me? Whe

E s obvosy aware o the myrad o compex and decate nancesbearg on hs sbect matter, he has eected to gnore many o them norder to proceed wth hs theory Choces o ths sort aways nvove arsk. Bt n takng that rsk E acheves somethng that s ncreasngyrare n mode soca theorythe wngness to oer a compete, n-compromsng statement

What, then s the sgncance o Es poston on seagmenta-ton? What qestons o nterest does t rase abot technoogcachange?

he am o E's dscsson s to denty the orgns o technoogca novety He s nterested n the genera crcmstances whch nence the ntrodcton o new dscoveres and devces nto the word nan everexpandng, everacceeratng ood What most peope take orgranted, E nds an extraordnary sta o aars Modern socetesand ther members mst contnay respond to scentc and technoogca nnovatons or whch they have tte or no prepaaton Yet thetde contnes, essentay npanned and nabated, wth nether mtnor preconceved drecton In recent years a nmber o schoars haveoned E n takng wonder at ths staton bt most o them haveseen the sse as one o persona and soca adaptaton ew havewanted to do what E nssts mst be done: to notce the eements odynamsm, necessty, and nectabty bt nto the origis o theprocess.

As we have seen, the dynamsm that E ncovers at ths eve sbsed on a seres o contngences It s based on an then knd oogc wth an attempt to demonstrate that a o the s actayhod he seagmentaton o technqe rests rom the convergence o three condtons: the nversa wngness o peope toseek and empoy technoogca nnovatons, 2 the exstence o or-

ganed soca systems n a technca eds, and ) the exstence otechnca orms pon whch new combnatons and modcatons are

Autonomous Technoogy 66 Engnes of Change 6


39/199

Autonomous Technoogy 66

baed If all of thee element are preent, the rapid expanion of tech-nique i aured

Perhap the mot intereting implication of Ellul cae i that each

pecific invention or dicovery in a ene "ha it time, a time when itintroduction into the world become virtually though not abolutely)inevitable Each new advace i latent in the exiting technical enemble Given the ocial ytem of inquirer and innovator, it willomehow find it way into the world Someone will find that it workthi way or "thi i how it fit together

George Kuble advane a imilar point, in h provocative interpre-tation of the hitory of art Even the mot original piece, he argue, aremore or le imilar to artifact of the ame ort painting, culpture,pottery, or ome other) that came before he life of an artit and the

character of hi or her work mut, therefore, be een a a matter oftheir poition in a continuing equence of live and work. "When apecific temperament interlock with a favorable poition, Kublerexplain, "the fortunate individual can extract from the ituation awealth of unimagined conequence hi achievement may be deniedto other peron, a well a to the ame peron at a different time huevery birth can be imagined a et into play on two wheel of fortune,one governing the allotment of it temperament, and the other rulingit entrance into a equence 58

A evidence for hi cae, Ellul cite a peculiar ituation in moderncience and technology: the frequent occurrence of imultaneou di-coverie and invention Anthropologit A. . Kroeber wa alo facinated with thi tae of affair and drew concluion imilar to Elluli reech revealed that many important advanceamong them thetelegraph, telephone, photgraphy, the periodic law of elementhadcome from the work of two or more individual working independentlyat approximately the ame time In Kroeber eye thi tended tointill a conviction that invention may be inevitable, within certainlimit that given a certain contellation and development of a culture,certain invention mut be made 59 Kroeber did not believe that thidicovery need dampen the pirit of cientit and technician hey

g g

would, after al l, till receive credit for their work from their peer Butin a larger ene, the cultural ene, "it i only a quetion of who willwork the idea out feaibly Will it be Bell or Gray in 1876 or omeone

ele in 1877 or 1878 or pehap a early a 1875 o the individualinventor the Who i allimportant, becaue it mean who i to get theprize o hi ociety, and to the world at large, the Who? i reallya matter of indifferenceexcept for entimental partianhipbecauethe invention wa going to be made anyway about when and where itwa made 60 Kroeber, furthermore, wa not the leat bit hy in labeling thi ituation a variety of determinim: "In a familiar metaphor, weay that the dicov

Winner. Autonomous Technology

Documents

Transcript of Winner. Autonomous Technology