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Concepts
Progress, criteria, evolution, sublime, control, nationalism, heresy, convenience, wants and needs, time and space, dissatisfaction, causality, technological determinism, cultural determinism, risk, “the machine,” Taylorism, bureaucracy, surveillance, autonomy, dependence
Summary
Slack and Wise introduce us to two concepts used as justification in the argument for technological advancement — progress and convenience — as well as two concepts that are not widely considered — determinism and control. They explain how the arguments for progress and convenience are somewhat flawed in that sometimes progress for some can lead to decline for others and how convenience isn’t. (Slack & Wise p. 34)
Quotations
“Across the board, however, the most prevalent result of [industrial, communication, agricultural, and electrification technologies] was the plunging of the Third World into incredible debt.” (Slack & Wise p. 22)
“A worker will only work maximum efficiency if constantly observed and if not interrupted by the need to make decisions.” ( p. 56)
“In working with material reality, the Slave comes to a true self-understanding of who he or she is in the world, something the Master can never do.” (Slack & Wise p. 62)
“The human condition is marked by the struggle of person against person to achieve dominance and control.” (p. 61)
Commentary
It has by now been made clear to me that technological advancement hasn’t been fully thought through. The driving force, of which, is control. In the beginning of chapter four, Slack and Wise argue that humans have lost control of the technologies invented to grant control. Cars, houses, televisions, and mobile phones were created to manipulate the world around us, but have they manipulated people as well?
Once humans have conquered nature, what else is there to conquer? This is where we take a turn for the worst. If humans can use technology for profit and growth, can’t they use other human bodies as well? The physical body is a machine as well, and when used to its maximum capacity, it can produce great results. Slack and Wise use factories as an example. Factory workers generate maximum output when they are observed and regulated. This creates a hierarchy of subordinates and superiors, and thus a class system. In this case, we are introduced to the proletariat and the bourgeoisie.
However, as systems like this class system grow, “it becomes harder to keep track of and therefore keep control of, the work that it does.” (p. 57) This is where revolts, protests, and labor unions come in. Issues could generate from the top down, within the wealthy class, or amongst the working class, but no one would be able to track it. The machine becomes its own entity controlled by no one.
The working class needs the middle class for consumption — earned money to purchase goods, services, and supplies. The middle class needs the working class in order for the machine to thrive. New technologies may be used to replace the working class, but if the working class is unable to purchase the product, companies will not make enough profit to break even. The new machines are expensive, after all.
Question
Did the profit and utilization of technology lead to the profit and utilization of human bodies?
