Albert Borgmann

Albert Borgmann - problem that he saw

theory of technology which is

• Neo -artistotelian (modern approach to virtue ethics)

• Quasi-pessimistic, this quasi-deterministic (partially inclined to expect the worst, and nearly able to be predicted, but not totally)

• Gives us a diagnosis, and a solution 

• Borgmann is said to be somewhat pessimistic and deterministic by the haters

His diagnosis - we are in the device paradigm and that’s bad and we observe a negative pattern within our use of a lot of technologies

Albert Borgmann - name of his solution to the problem of paradigm

Solution: Focal Things and Focal Practices

Device Paradigm

“Machinery” vs ‘commodity” 

Machinery vs. commodity def

• Commodity: being entertained by technology, ex. A tv show brings you joy as it is mentally stimulating, funny, etc. 

• Machinery: how do we acquire this commodity in a real way, the technology that produces the results

Machinery vs. commodity - how does this define the device paradigm

The machinery is more and more in the background as the commodity is now so readily available and detached. We went from building rooms around TVs to being able to watch any show anytime on your phone or laptop

• Because we have these commodities so available we may just sit and consume all that is available 

  • What do you want of value out of a day, not just what you have to do what do you want your day to look like, what will fulfill you 

  • Its not inherently bad to consume the commodities, however because they are so available, instead of doing things of value we just can bounce from one commodity to another

focal things and practices

• Borgmann speaks about making focal things in your life that are meaningful to YOU because of what YOU care about – his example was thanksgiving for an out of state student and the waiting in security lines and getting a plane ticket and etc etc. these things are meaningful to you and are now oriented around the focal point, making them independently valuable 

  • We used to have to huddle around a fire to survive, in todays day and age these necessities are not prevalent anymore, we need to find our own personal meaning and importance to our lives and the tech we use 

technological determinism

Technological advancements essentially control our future as a population

instrumentalism

1.  technology is politically and ethically moral as it is something we utilize 

• Doesn’t consider technology as something inherently bad or good, though does see advancement as a positive 

Prof says: he thinks us in this room are likely to agree with optimism and instrumentalism even though they technically contradict each other in some ways

technological instrumentalism (utopian/distopian)

technological utopianism: look how much technology has advanced and think about the endless possibilities

technological dystopianism - technology keeps advancing to be more and more dangerous and uncontrollable (clubs → guns → bombs)