Technology and its role in present culture

I have to admit, these readings, for the most part, went way over my head. I wasn’t able to fully comprehend the concepts explored or the theses that the authors developed, but I’ll do my best to summarize and give my opinion.

All three articles talked about the importance of art and technology in the modern world, and how technology has drastically changed our society. In “The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction” by Benjamin, he explores how each medium of art–painting, music, cinema can be reproduced and how the reproduction changes the essence of the artwork. He says, “Art has always been reproducible….but mechanical reproduction of a work of art represents something new.” (pg 218) A turning point occurred with the invention of photography. Now more than ever, reproduction was faster and easier than before. He goes on to include a quote by Paul Valery that uncannily predicts the future: “Just as water, gas, and electricity are brought into our houses from far off to satisfy our needs in response to a minimal effort, so we shall be supplied with visual or auditory images, which will appear and disappear with a simple movement of the hand, hardly more than a sign.” (pg 219) Here, Valery could be talking about television, stereos, iPods, or even smart phones. Benjamin goes on to speak about the role of reproduction in the value or meaning of art. He says that in reproduction, the originals are detached from tradition, and are given new life centuries after they were created. This is particularly evident in how classic stories, like Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been recreated countless times and in countless art forms, so that now, 420 years after the story was originally told, it is still an active part of our cultural narrative. It used to be that “the value of authentic works of art has its basis in ritual,” but now, in the age of mechanical reproduction, authenticity matters less, and the politics of art matters more. Further, the “mechanical reproduction of art changes the reaction of the masses towards art,” (pg 234) in that art is available and accessible to the masses much more than it had been in previous centuries.

The next article, titled “The Question Concerning Technology” by Heidegger examines what technology actually is. His thesis (I believe) is that technology is both the means to an end and a human activity. I’ll be honest: I didn’t get too much from this article because it was quite hard for me to understand, but I did find a particularly chilling and relevant quote that I’d like to focus on. Heidegger says, “Everything depends on our manipulating technology…We will master it. The will to mastery becomes all the more urgent the more technology threatens to slip from human control.” Technology slipping from human control has become a real concern in our society today. We find people addicted to their smart phones, children and babies pacified and silenced with their parents (or their own) state of the art cell phones and iPads, people unable to complete their jobs without a computer because we have built our entire lives and careers around the use of technology. Less imminent but still unnerving is the question of artificial intelligence. Should we be trying to create AI that could perhaps surpass human control and intelligence? Would it help our world by solving problems that humans cannot–like climate change, starvation, and mental illness–or would it make our world a more dangerous and chaotic place? I agree with Heidegger that we must master technology…but I’m not quite sure what it has to do with social memory.

The last article, called “The Medium is the Massage” by Mcluhan, was quite entertaining and interesting to read, and it brought up some really interesting ideas about the ways in which we think, educate, and grow as human beings. Mcluhan starts out by stating that everything is being changed by technology, and takes us through nearly every aspect of life that has been affected (by technology). Some of the most relevant things he mentions, I think, is the younger generation and that “Youth instinctively understands the present environment,” which I think is true, especially when it comes to technology. He says that the family circle has widened: children are now shaped not only by their parents and family unit, but by all the technology and information that technology delivers to them. Interestingly, he talks about politics and how television and instant news has shaped the ways in which people inform themselves and make decisions. “A new form of politics is emerging…the living room has become a voting booth. Participation via television…is changing everything.” I particularly liked his take on the sociopolitical implications of technology on minority groups: “In an electric information environment, minority groups can no longer be contained–ignored. Our new enviroment compells committment and participation.” I think this is perhaps the most important quote I’ve come across in this class so far–and the most relevant. I feel that today, especially with the rise of Trump and the harshly divided political climate of the US, more and more people are taking action, and minority groups that previously would not have such an impact, are given voice by means of the technology that they possess. The very true main point of this article is that understanding sociological change is impossible without understanding the way media alters every environment we are in.