Technics and the Nature of Man

Bibliographic Data

ID4020534
AuthorsLewis Mumford (corresponding author)
Year1966
Volume7
Issue3
Pages303
Publication date1966-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueTechnology and Culture (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0040-165X • E-ISSN: 1097-3729
PublisherJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/3101930
OpenAlexW2334144167
LanguageEN
Citations received12

The last century, we all realize, has witnessed a radical transformation in the entire human environment, largely as a result of the impact of the mathematical and physical sciences upon technology. This shift from an empirical, tradition-bound technics to an experimental scientific mode has opened up such new realms as those of nuclear energy, supersonic transportation, cybernetic intelligence, and instantaneous planetary communication. In terms of the currently accepted picture of the relation of man to technics, our age is passing from the primeval state of man, marked by his invention of tools and weapons for the purpose of achieving mastery over the forces of nature, to a radically diifferent condition, in which he will not only have conquered nature but detached himself completely from the organic habitat. With this new megatechnics, man will create a uniform, all-enveloping structure, designed for automatic operation. Instead of functioning actively as a tool-using animal, man will become a passive, machine-serving animal whose proper functions, if this process continues unchanged, will either be fed into a machine, or strictly limited and controlled for the benefit of depersonalized collective organizations. The ultimate tendency of this development was correctly anticipated by Samuel Butler more than a century ago; but it is only now that his playful fantasy shows many signs of becoming a far-from-playful reality. My purpose in this paper is to question both the assumptions and the predictions upon which our commitment to the present form of technical and scientific progress, as an end itself, has been based. In par

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