. . .

Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology by Neil Postman, 1993  Vintage Books, NY

 

Neil Postman, professor of Media Ecology and astute cultural commentator argues that we live in a “Technopoly” – a self-justifying self-perpetuating system in which technology is granted sovereignty over social institutions and our everyday lives.  He adds that we no longer use technology but are in fact shaped by it, thus changing what we mean by politics, intellect, religion, history and privacy and even truth.  

The key symbol of a Technopoly is the computer since it "undermines the old idea of school" by defeating group learning, cooperation and social responsibility al the while it strengthens Technopoly's hold by “substituting technical solutions for human ones”.

Dividing the act of living with technology into two parts, Postman concludes with the following two choices as solutions: do what the individual can do irrespective of what the culture is doing (become a loving resistance fighter) or accept what the culture can do irrespective of what any individual is doing.

After reading Postman's book I have hear echoes of Henry David Thoreau simplified our current dilemma his simple phrase "men have become the tools of their tools".  Thus, we need to re-define the role of technology and even though ironically we will use “it” to do so, we must tread lightly while doing so.

Links of interest regarding Technolopy:

Neil Postman

http://blog.lib.umn.edu/muwah005/architecture/