本文是一篇英语论文，本文认为技术在提供更好生活的同时，也改变着人们的生活方式和思维模式。但是对技术的过度依赖必将导致人的异化。作者理查德•鲍尔斯在批判技术理性的同时，也强调艺术对技术理性的批判性和超越性。
Chapter One Technological Rationality as a New Form ofIdeology
1.1 Collusion of Technology and Capital
In Dialectic of Enlightenment,Horkheimer and Adorno implicate that the“technicalrationality today is the rationality of domination”(95).And technology“aims to produceneither concepts nor images,nor the joy of understanding,but method,exploitation of thelabor of others,capital”(2).In other words,in advanced industrial societies,technologyfunctions as a tool employed by capitalists to safeguard their interests.When individualsimmerse themselves in an overwhelming pursuit of material possessions,objects andtechnology become deeply ingrained as the prevailing ideology in society.Therefore,technological rationality has built a coordination between economics and technology,with power residing in the hands of capitalists.Consequently,scientific entrepreneurs in the novelsuch as Thomas Kurton may appear to be at the forefront of new technological advancements;however,they are ultimately subservient to capital.And Thassadit Amzwar,the protagonist ofthe event of happiness gene,gradually loses her dominance over her body and becomes acommodity.The technological society becomes the society of objects.“This fetishistic logic is,strictly,the ideology of consumption”(Baudrillard 60).
1.2 Deception of Mass Media
The most dangerous aspect of technological rationality is that it can make the will ofcapitalists easily penetrate into the public consciousness without being discovered,so thatpeople are not aware of their being manipulated.The culture industry,which is thecommodification and standardization of mass culture,is a great catalyzer of dominance.InThe Culture Industry,Adorno makes it clear that the culture industry serves as a form ofinstrumental rationality(11),“which is adept at promoting the right attitudes and which hasentered into alliance with reification insofar as it proffers precisely for a disenchanted world”(61).In a developed technological society,it constantly propagates the infinite possibilities oftechnology for men’s future and draws their attention to the welfare brought by technology,while“removing the thought that there is any alternative to the status quo”(Adorno 10-11).In this way,technological rationality realizes its control of individuals’consciousness.Andthrough mass media,capitalists convey their spirit and voice to them without beingquestioned.Thus,it realizes the rationality of manipulation and promotes the legitimacy ofobjectification.
Chapter Two Alienation under Technological Rationality
2.1 Blindness to True Happiness in Life
According to Jaspers,“man’s life has become dependent upon the apparatus whichproves ruinous to mankind at one and the same time by its perfectionment and by itsbreakdown”(62).That being said,technology has the potential to enhance human capabilities,but simultaneously it also poses a threat by undermining them.This detrimental impact maynot be as overt as warfare or violence,but rather lies concealed within the essence ofhumanity.As individuals become increasingly regulated and influenced by technologicalrationality,there is an unprecedented distortion of human nature and suppression of spirit.Consequently,the intrinsic qualities of love,passion,and sensibility are diminished withinindividuals.In Eros and Civilization,Marcuse points out that in the process of technologicalrationality,“the domain of the instincts,sensuousness,[is]considered as eternally hostile anddetrimental to reason”(160).In other words,in the technological society,men’s instinct andsensibility is expelled.People who have lost their senses cannot perceive the joy and meaningof life,and do not know what makes life truly more enjoyable.As Tirosh-Samuelson indicates,technological rationality“technologizes our deepest values,including our understanding ofhappiness and perfection”(215).Therefore,individuals,immersed in the ocean of technology,is losing their personal perception and experience of life.
2.2 Estrangement of Interpersonal Relationship
According to Karl Marx,“the estrangement of man,and in fact every relationship inwhich man stands to himself,is first realized and expressed in the relationship in which a man stands to other men”(Economic and Philosophic 79).In the situation that individuals areestranged by technological rationality,the erosion of interpersonal relationship is inevitable.In Generosity,in the world presented by Powers,it seems that men are tied together by thehuge Internet which offers a great efficiency to their connection.However,although the wholeworld is“hyperlinked”,people are emotionally detached.The pursuit of technologicaladvancement and opportunities for fame overshadow the trust and sincerity that underliehuman interactions.Technology has turned society into a giant robot.And within this intricatemachinery of society,interpersonal connections have become as impersonal and detached asthe gears themselves.Therefore,in the novel,Powers questions the alienated interpersonalrelationship caused by technological rationality.The relationship between human beings,which exhibits indications of potential disintegration at any given moment,is replaced andcovered up by the relationship between objects.Despite the convenience of interpersonalcommunication,the spiritual distance between people is getting farther,leading to a pervasivesense of alienation in society.This phenomenon extends beyond friendships,romanticrelationships,familial bonds,and neighborly connections,not to mention interactions amongstrangers.
Chapter Three Challenge to Technological Rationality ............................ 49
3.1 Artists’ Voice of Resistance ................................. 49
3.2 Stone’s Revival of Happiness ........................ 53
Conclusion ................................. 61
Chapter Three Challenge to Technological Rationality
3.1 Artists’Voice of Resistance
In Generosity,despite the pervasive influence of technological rationality eroding humandiscernment and critical thinking,there are still a group of people in the novel who areexposing the social reality and accusing the distortion of humanity and moral ethics bygenetic modification and human enhancement technology,and they are artists.As Marcusepoints out,art takes the“transcendent,critical,antagonistic function”(“Society”128).
In fact,the intersection of art and technology has consistently emerged as a prominentmotif in Powers’novels.In his works,he always discusses the conflict between the twodomains,trying to find a balance between them.In Generosity,the collision between art andtechnology is mainly manifested in the show,“Over the Limit”,where multiple authors areinvited to talk about their views on novel technological advancements,and their opponent isthe transhumanist scientist,Thomas Kurton.
Conclusion
Richard Powers,as an acclaimed contemporary American writer,offers a discerning andinnovative perspective on the rapidly evolving industrial society in Chicago.The intricateinterplay among technology,society,and humanity explored in Generosity also resonatesthroughout his other literary works.Compared with his other works,Generosity has receivedless attention,but the value of this novel far outweighs its level of popularity.In Generosity,Powers’concern goes beyond the ethical degradation resulting from gene editing and humanenhancement.With a more comprehensive perspective,he places significant emphasis on therole of technology in governance and its profound influence on both the material and spiritualaspects of human existence.Technological rationality refers to the ruling logic whereby thosein power exploit individuals’dependence on technology to enhance their manipulation.In thisprocess,the advancement of technology has become a formidable impediment to humans’pursuit of happiness and freedom.
In Generosity,Richard Powers expresses his thought-provoking critique of the influenceand potential dangers of technological rationality.He conducts a critical examination of thefuture society dominated by technological rationality,wherein the pervasive influence of thisrationality extends beyond individuals’political and economic realms to infiltrate their spiritsand innate tendencies.Even mass media has transformed into a mechanism of manipulation,instilling in individuals the belief that technology holds the key to an enhanced existence.Consequently,they willingly succumb to a state of psychological and spiritual servitude.Andwith this new form of ideology permeating every facet of individual existence,the distinctperspective through which men perceive the world is gradually eroding.
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