Philosophy and the concept of technology
on the anthropological significance of technology
pp. 179-194
Abstract
The philosophy of technology has always (explicitly or implicitly) been interested in the anthropological dimension of man's relationship to technology. The philosophical question of our concept of technology can't be treated separately from that of our concept of humanity. The philosophy of technology, therefore, always has a more or less strongly pronounced anthropological component.1 This can, on the one hand, be individualistically oriented, seen in relation to individual humans and individual technologies (in the "technicalized" formulation, often known as the "human-machine-interface"). On the other hand, the cultural and social aspects of the relationship between society and technology can be emphasized, as is usually the case in the sociology of technological systems (Halfmann 1996). The first explicit attempt at a philosophy of technology (Kapp 1877) is primarily an interpretation of cultural history with special reference to technology, and sees technology (individualistic viewpoint) above all as an amplification and extension of man's organic capabilities. Technology is perceived as a projection and a strengthening of human organs, in particular, of the hand's abilities.2
Publication details
Published in:
Grunwald Armin, Gutmann Mathias, Neumann-Held Eva (2002) On human nature: anthropological, biological, and philosophical foundations. Dordrecht, Springer.
Pages: 179-194
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-50023-7_13
Full citation:
Grunwald Armin (2002) „Philosophy and the concept of technology: on the anthropological significance of technology“, In: A. Grunwald, M. Gutmann & E. Neumann-Held (eds.), On human nature, Dordrecht, Springer, 179–194.