Technology, Modernity, and Democracy

Reviews / Votes

Part of what makes Feenberg's work philosophically significant is his style as a writer. He is able to craft sentences and paragraphs to reveal a lifetime's worth of philosophical insights presented in a way that is accessible but not patronizing. Amongst the essays found in this collection, there are a few that stand out. 'Ten paradoxes of technology' is an excellent introduction to the discipline of the philosophy of technology that would benefit undergraduate students, 'Agency and citizenship in a technological society' serves as a concise summary of Feenberg's argument for the democratization of technology and 'The politics of meaning: modernity, technology, and rationality' provides a thorough intellectual history of the critique of instrumental and technological rationality. More intriguing than these individual essays, though, are the hints towards a social theory of rationality that accounts for the ways in which technologies, organizations, forms of administration and markets share the same form of rationality. * Prometheus * Andrew Feenberg has done more than anyone else to develop a critical constructivism that ensures the relevance of critical theory to technology studies in the 21st century. This collection of essays is a fine crystallisation of that perspective and represents the ideal point of entry for anyone new to Feenberg's thought. This impressive collection of essays shows why Feenberg is rightly regarded as the leading expert on science and technology studies writing today. Having participated in pioneering developments in medical research protocols, on-line education platforms, and digital information systems, he brings a profound critical awareness to the social politics informing the democratization of science and technology in the age of economic domination.