We live in the era of modern technologies. People cannot imagine their life without modern technologies and as a result, we do not even pay attention to its influence over our life and the way of thinking. Technologies have captured human life making them blind to the surrounding world. The relationships between a human being and nature which have been so close at the beginning of civilization are destroyed with the development of technologies. This question has become the main subject of many philosophers. The notion of technologies has become to be researched not only from the scientific point of view, but it has attracted a lot of philosophers. Heidegger devotes the whole work to the influence of technologies over humankind in his work “The Question Concerning Philosophy.”
Heidegger has based his work on his basic concept of the revealing of the Western World where the truth is limited. Truth is believed to be limited to knowledge. Truth is called revealing by Heidegger that is imposed on humanity. Truth is connected not only with knowledge, but it refers to all the objects surrounding us. Human life is based not only on knowledge but emotions, feelings, desires, goals, the role in society also play a vital role for us. All these factors predetermine our vision of the surrounding world. For example, if both the atheist and a religious person look at the church their thoughts will be different. Atheist considers this building as a work of art while religious person considers this place to be the Lord’s house (Windermere, n.d.). This place is beautiful for the atheist while for the believer it is holy. Heidegger points out the revealing aspects of each object of the surrounding world that depend on the attitude of every person to this object. Although the points of view concerning the church are considerably different, they both are true. Both these points of view are aspects of the church. All modes of revealing are true, and the truth is considered to the revealing. All factors influencing our attitude to the surrounding world are revealing. When people like the object it is considered to be a lovely while when it is hated it is considered to be horrible. As for technologies Heidegger tries to present this notion from a different point of view. Some people consider them to be hostile towards a human being while other people consider it to be the improvement of human life. There is no doubt that technologies make human life better. Nevertheless, this improvement touches upon only the material side of our life but what the spiritual one? How does it influence the notion of revealing?
To answer all the questions having asked above it is necessary to understand the essence of technologies. Heidegger is very interested in the essence of modern technology that is highlighted in his work “The Question Concerning Technology” but the basic subject of his work is not the interpretation of different approaches of the technology. The main theme of this work is the relationships between the so-called ‘we’ and modern technologies. He combines his notion of revealing with the technological development that influenced the human mind in his work. The main problem is not the notion of technology and its different forms in the modern world but a human attitude to technology. This problem should be considered as far as a human response to the technological problems is restricted only to the problem of making this technology better. He points out: “The will to mastery becomes all the more urgent the more technology threatens to slip from human control” (Heidegger). Technological development makes people blind to other ways of revealing. When people become more skilled at technological inventions, they become more susceptible to its influence. Heidegger makes the emphasis on this problem in the following words: “Thus we shall never experience our relationship to the essence of technology so long as we merely conceive and push forward the technological, put up with it, or evade it. Everywhere we remain unfree and chained to technology, whether we passionately affirm or deny it’ (Heidegger). People should understand this problem and face it. There is no sense to deny that we are not influenced by technological development. This problem should not be kept secret or be avoided. Heidegger presents this problem in a full way and provides the way of its solution.
Heidegger begins his work with the definition of technology. He provides different interpretations to cast light upon the gist of the problem. Heidegger’s statement that ‘the essence of technology is by no means anything technological’ confuses some readers. It seems to be contradictory but there is a deep sense in this statement used by Heidegger with a particular aim. This statement allows him to look at this problem from a philosophical point of view. He is not going to appeal to scientific knowledge, but he wants to present the technological development historically. There is a lot of scientific research concerning the subject of technology, but people do not pay enough attention to its philosophical side.
Heidegger uses questions in his work to attract the reader’s attention to the role of technologies in his/her life particularly. He asks the question: “How do we generally think about technology?” (Heidegger) and he provides two basic answers to this question. Technology is considered as a means to an end on the one hand and as a human activity on the other hand. These answers are based on instrumental definition aimed at getting things done and anthropological one where technology is a human activity. It should be noted that with the technological development the instrumental definition has ousted the anthropological one. Technology has become to be oriented to the resulting effect rather than to the process itself. More than that, modern technology is the result of the work of machinery rather than of human activity. Nevertheless, both these definitions are true and present the notion of technology from different points of view. As we have stated above the main aim of Heidegger’s work is not the essence of technology. He provides this definition to point out the real influence of technology on human life.
The basic concepts of his work are Zeit denoting time and Sein denoting a human being that is described as ungewohnlich and unheimlich to the person. These attributes mean ‘unusual’ and ‘unhomely’. The main problem of a human being is the understanding of the human essence. “Who are we?” is the question that disturbs many generations and is an eternal question often asked by philosophers. Our essence relates to our appeal to the world which is changed with the course of time or the so-called Zeit influencing our Sein. Time is closely connected to the development of technologies that influences a human revealing to the surrounding world. The development of technologies is historically predetermined that is why the notion of technology should be thought over from the point of view of history.
Heidegger opposes traditional technology of the past and modern technologies. With the development of technologies, mankind becomes more influenced by it and people do not even pay attention to this influence as far as the development itself is more important for them. Heidegger refers to farming to the traditional technology. He describes the peasant’s attitude to the land. Heidegger presents this attitude to be respectful. The peasant takes care of the land, cultivates it, and hopes to get a good yield. Modern technology has changed this attitude to the land. The land is treated as the source of income, and it is exploited to get as much yield as possible. People exploit the land instead of its fascination. For example, the dam on the Rhine is considered to be the source of energy and even when the tourists admire its beauty it is considered to be the source for the tourist industry (Windermere, n.d.). All things around us have become the source of human exploitation.
Modern technology has changed people’s attitudes to the surrounding world. The world is seen from the point of view of the modern technological mind. Everything is treated as ‘a calculable coherence of forces’ (Windermere, n.d.). Physics as science has begun to be used not only to justify the surrounding world but to demonstrate how it may be used to make human life better. People have an exploitative way of mind. People’s understanding of nature as the main resource prevails their consciousness of humanity. People have begun to consider only those facts to be the truth that is scientifically proved. Heidegger considers scientific knowledge to be one of the modes of revealing. Nevertheless, he points out that it is not the only mode of revealing, influencing the people’s attitude to the surrounding world. As a result, the objects of the world may be considered as “the main resources, a calculable coherence of forces, objects of scientific knowledge, mere relations of cause and effect” by the modern people (Windermere, n.d.). More than that, these objects may be assessed aesthetically, religiously, and poetically but all these modes of revealing are not so popular among people whose mind is captured with technological development.
Revealing is explained by Heidegger as the way of relationships between a human being and the surrounding world. This revealing influences not only a human attitude to the surrounding world but it influences the whole life. Modern technologies with people’s attitude to the surrounding world as to ‘calculable coherence of forces’ make them pure calculators who treat the world as the source of income (Windermere, n.d.). All people’s achievements are the domination over nature. Human dignity is connected to human consciousness. “The fullness of human consciousness depends upon the fullness with which consciousness allows nature to reveal itself in it” (Windermere, n.d.). If a human being wants to be richer spiritually the surrounding world should be revealed from different points of view not only as a source of income. Although Heidegger does not consider technological inventions to be dangerous, he points out that the way of revealing imposed by the technological development may hamper people from alternate modes of revealing and the belief that this revealing is the truth.
Heidegger opposes nature to technological development as well as an authentic human consciousness to the exploitative way of mind. Although, technological development influences the way of human thinking in quite a negative way Heidegger does not believe that mankind should stop making technological inventions as far as it is not real salvation. He points out that although humankind cannot do away with technological development it is possible to do away with its dominance. People should not allow technological development to influence them in such a way. It is necessary to consider that this way of revealing is only one of many other ways. If people confine themselves only to this way of revealing they will be deprived of the possibility to enjoy the surrounding world from different points of view. Heidegger treats a free relationship to technology to be the solution to the problem. He points out: “The relationship will be free when it opens our human existence to the essence of technology” (Heidegger). Heidegger recognizes an alternate way of revealing the world combining the way of the artist and craftsman.
From all the above said we may conclude that Heidegger presenting the influence of technology over a human life attracts the reader’s attention to one of the burning issues of modern society. He states that a human revealing to the world has been restricted to only exploitative and materialistic ones. Although Heidegger does not consider technologies to be the only cause of the restriction of a human mind, he points out the importance of making technologies less dominant in human life. A free attitude to technologies allows a human being to enjoy his/her life in a full way.
Works Cited
Heidegger, Martin. The Question Concerning Technology. n.d. Web. 2012.
Windermere, Arthur. n.d. Understanding Heidegger’s The Question Concerning Technology. Web. 2012. Web.