The Myth of the Machine: Technics and human developmentAn in-depth look at the forces that have shaped modern technology since prehistoric times. Mumford criticizes the modern trend of technology, which emphasizes constant, unrestricted expansion, production, and replacement. He contends that these goals work against technical perfection, durability, social efficiency, and overall human satisfaction. Modern technology fails to produce lasting, quality products by using devices such as consumer credit, installment buying, non-functioning and defective designs, built-in fragility, and frequent superficial "fashion" changes. "Without constant enticement by advertising," he writes, "production would slow down and level off to normal replacement demand. Otherwise many products could reach a plateau of efficient design which would call for only minimal changes from year to year." |
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Contents
PROLOGUE | 3 |
THE MINDFULNESS OF MAN | 14 |
IN THE DREAMTIME LONG AGO | 48 |
Copyright | |
11 other sections not shown
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Common terms and phrases
achieved activities ancient animal became become beginning body brain brought called century cities civilization collective command complex continued created cultivation culture daily divine domestication dream earlier earliest early economic effective effort Egypt equally established evidence existence experience expression fact forces functions further hand human hunting important improvement increase institutions interpretation invention kind king kingship knowledge labor language later least less limited living machine magic man's material means mechanical megamachine merely military mind myth nature necessary neolithic never noted observation once operations organization original paleolithic performed perhaps period personality physical plants play possible practice present primitive production reason remained ritual seems sense sexual significant social society speech stone symbolic technical thousand tion took turn village whole York
Bibliographic information
| Title | The Myth of the Machine: Technics and human development Harvest book Volume 1 of The Myth of the Machine, Lewis Mumford The Myth of the Machine; Technics and Human Development, Lewis Mumford |
| Author | Lewis Mumford |
| Publisher | Harcourt, Brace & World, 1967 |
| Original from | the University of Michigan |
| Digitized | May 4, 2007 |
| Length | 342 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |