Myth and technology: Finding philosophy's role in technological change

Abstract

In this paper, I argue that philosophy's potential to influence technological change is impeded by the presence of two common and influential myths surrounding technology-the myth of progress and the myth of technological determinism. Such myths, I suggest, hinder philosophy's influence by presenting a distorted image of technology-respectively, as an unqualified good, and as an entity with its own autonomous logic. Steven Pinker and Martin Heidegger are selected as influential advocates for progress and technological determinism respectively, and their work is explored in turn. The work of John Gray and of Herbert Marcuse is then employed to demythologise technology by articulating an alternative image of technology that is not just more accurate, but also more conducive to philosophical influence. Finally, the work of Hans Jonas and Luciano Floridi is used to ground the conclusion that, should philosophy wish to influence technological change, an effective method of doing so could be the articulation of ethical maxims and the supervision of their translation into a real world setting.