Yale University, School of Architecture

Noles on lIe TIing

AulIov|s) EIizaIelI Ovosz
Bevieved vovI|s)
Souvce Fevspecla, VoI. 33, Mining Aulonon |2002), pp. 78-79
FuIIisIed I The MIT Press on IeIaIJ oJ Fevspecla.
SlaIIe UBL http://www.jstor.org/stable/1567299 .
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78 / OBOSZ
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BIO
AIII... n aII
no.
Nil .
A,
,JA
-SIA ,'I I
11F
TIis
avgunenl
is
pvesenled
in lIe Jovn oJ
pos-
luIales, ov valIev
pvovocalions,
a naniJeslo on
lIe
lIing.
TIe
lIing Ias, in lIe Wesl, aIvas
Ieen
conceived as lIe
passive, inevl, unvesisling
olIev ov
counlevpavl
lo lIe
suIjecl,
conscious-
ness, ov nind, lIal is, as nallev, suIslance, ov
nounena.TIe
lIing
is lIal
againsl
vIicI nind
is undevslood, ils olIev ov
oIjecl.
TIeve is anolIev Iess
sslenalic
and nove
suInevged
lvadilion oJ lIe
lIing
vilIin lIe Iis-
lov
oJ
pIiIosopI,
vIicI
avguaII
dales Jvon
lIe vovI oJ Bavvin, and neandevs
lIvougI
NielzscIe, lo Feivce, Janes, Bevgson
lo
Bovl
and BeIeuze. TIis counlev-lvadilion conceives
oJ lIe
lIing,
nol as olIev, Iul as
pvovocalion
ov incilenenl Jov lIe
suIjecl
lIe
lIing
is lIal
vIicI
pvonpls
us lo acl, lo invenl, lo
pvaclice,
lo exlend ouvseIves
Ieond
ouvseIves.
WilIin lIis Ialev lvadilion, lIe
lIing
ilseIJ
is divided ov
dupIicaled.
Il is IolI vesouvce ov
vav naleviaI, lIe
given
ov
slavling poinl
oJ IiJe
and lIe Iunan
|Heideggev's slanding
vesevve
ov Lacan's BeaI), and il is aIso lIe
pvoducl,
eJJecl, ov conslvucl oJ lIe
Iiving |Mavx's con-
nodil, Bevgson's oIjecl).
TIe
lIing
is IolI
pve-
and
posl-lecInoIogicaI,
lIal vIicI lecInoI-
og
Jinds
given
and venaIes as ils ovn. In lIis
sense, lecInoIog
nusl Ie undevslood lo Ie
lIe second-ovdev
lIing,
lIe
lIing
lIal
Jinds
and
naIes olIev
lIings,
as il ilseIJ Ias Ieen nade.
WilIin lIe
pvagnalisl lvadilion, lIe vovId
ilseIJ, and ouv
Ieing posilioned
vilIin il, gen-
evales
queslions, pvoIIens, pvovocalions
Jov
IiJe vIal lo eal? Hov lo allain il? Hov lo
Iive?
B
vIal neans?
TIings
ave lIe
va
in vIicI IiJe
vesponds
lo lIese
pvovocalions.
BolI inslincl and
inleIIigence,
IIind aninaI
and
inleIIigenlI
divecled
|pvinale
ov
nannaI)
IeIaviovs, ave inciled
I
lIe veaI and
pvoduce
lIings,
lIe division oJ lIe veaI, as lIeiv node
oJ
acling
in lIe vovId and
vendeving
il
nanage-
aIIe. TIe
lIing
is a
culling
oul oJ lIe veaI, lIe
soIidiJicalion oJ vIal exisls in lIe JIux oJ lIe
veaI. Il is an oulIine
inposed
on lIe veaI
I
ouv
puvposes
and needs.
TIis
culling
oJ lIe vovId, lIis
vIillIing
dovn oJ lIe
pIelIova
oJ lIe vovId's
inlevpene-
lvaling quaIilies
inlo
oIjecls
anenaIIe lo ouv
aclion, is a
JundanenlaII
conslvuclive
pvo-
cess ve naIe ov JaIvicale lIe vovId oJ
oIjecls
as an
aclivil
ve undevlaIe
I Iiving
vilI and
assiniIaling oIjecls.
We naIe
oIjecls
in ovdev
lo Iive in lIe vovId. Ov, in anolIev, NielzscIean
sense, ve nusl Iive in lIe vovId
avlislicaII,
as
Iono JaIev.
TIis
pvocess
oJ JaIvicalion oJ lIe vovId
inlo
lIings, oIjecls
vilI
cIeavI
deIinilaIIe
and delevninaIIe veIalions, Jinds ils naluvaI
incIinalion divecled lo
soIids.TIings
ave soIids,
conceived
pvogvessiveI
as nove and nove
ninule in lIeiv Iasic conslilulion, as
pIsics
ilseIJ eIaIovales nove and nove ninule Jun-
danenlaI
pavlicIes.
Yel
pIsics
ilseIJ venains
incapaIIe
oJ
undevslanding
vIal is JIuid, innu-
nevaIIe, oulside caIcuIalion vilIoul veduclion
lo soIids. Il is lIis JIux, lIougI,
sonelines vec-
ognized
in
pIiIosopI,
lIal
pvovides
lIe condi-
lion Jov lIe
genevalion
oJ nev
lIings
Jvon oId
lIings.
Ouv avlislicness, as NielzscIe
puls il,
ouv
cvealivil,
in
Bevgsonian levns, consisls in
nolIing
eIse lIan lIe conlinuous
expevinenla-
lion vilI lIe vovId oJ
lIings,
lo
pvoduce
nev
lIings
Jvon lIe
JIuidil
ov JIux, vIicI eIude
evevda need, ov use-vaIue.
TecInoIog,
as
nelapvoduclion,
is lIe
vesuIl oJ lIe
Iiving Ieing's capacil
lo uliIize
lIe
non-Iiving |and lIe
Iiving) pvoslIelicaII.
TIis
pvoslIelic exislence is lIe
Iiving's depen-
dence on and
capacil
lo Iavness and
incov-
povale
lIe
non-Iiving
inlo ils
IodiI pvaclices.
WIal
pvagnalisn
enlaiIs is a
vecognilion
lIal
lIe
lecInoIogicaI
is and
aIvas
Ias Ieen lIe
condilion oJ Iunan aclion, as
necessav
Jov us
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MININO AUTONOMY / 79
TIis
papev
vas Jivsl
pvesenled
as
pavl
oJ lIe conJevence enlilIed
TIe
Fvagnalisl Inaginalion
TIinIing
aIoul
TIing.
in lIe
MaIing
IeId al lIe
TenpIe Hone
BueII Cenlev Jov lIe
Slud
oJ
Anevican AvcIilecluve al CoIunIia
Univevsil,
in
Spving
2000.
IIe I1in1
as
lIings
lIenseIves.
TecInoIog
can Ie con-
ceived as lIe cuIluvaI covveIale oJ lIe
lIing,
vIicI is ilseIJ lIe Iunan ov
Iiving
covveIale oJ
lIe
naleviaIil
oJ lIe vovId.
Bevgson
cIains lIal lIe inleIIecl lvans-
Jovns nallev inlo
lIings,
vIicI vendev lIen
as
pvoslIeses,
avliJiciaI
ovgans,
and in a suv-
pvising vevevsaI, al lIe sane line as il Iunan-
izes ov ovdevs naluve, il
appends
ilseIJ as a
Iind oJ
pvoslIesis
lo
inovganic
nallev ilseIJ, lo
Junclion as ils valionaI
suppIenenl,
ils con-
scious
vendeving.
Mallev and IiJe Iecone
veJIeclions, lIvougI
lIe
ovdeving
lIe inleIIecl
naIes oJ lIe vovId.
TIings
Iecone lIe nea-
suve oJ IiJe's aclion
upon lIen, lIings
Iecone
slanding vesevve, IiJe ilseIJ
Iecones exlended
lIvougI lIings.
Inovganic nallev, lvansJovned inlo an
innense
ovgan,
a
pvoslIesis, lIvougI
lIe inleI-
Iecl, is
pevIaps
lIe nosl
pvinovdiaI
ov eIenen-
lav
deJinilion
oJ avcIilecluve ilseIJ, vIicI is,
in a sense, lIe
Jivsl
pvoslIesis,
lIe
Jivsl
inslvu-
nenlaI use oJ
inleIIigence
lo neId lIe vovId
inlo
lIings, lIvougI
a cevlain
pvinilive
lecI-
nicil,
lo lIe needs oJ lIe
Iiving.
TIe
inovganic
Iecones lIe nivvov Jov lIe
possiIIe
aclion oJ
lIe
Iiving,
lIe avnaluve and avcIilecluve neces-
sav
Jov lIe suvvivaI and evoIulion oJ lIe
Iiving.
TIe Iinil oJ lIe inleIIecl is in a sense lIe
Iinil oJ lIe lecInicaI and lIe
lecInoIogicaI.
TIe inleIIecl Junclions lo dissecl, divide, alon-
ize
conlenpovav
Iinavizalion and
digilaIiza-
lion ave
sinpI
lIe cuvvenl vevsions oJ lIis len-
denc
lo lIe cIeav-cul, lIe
unanIiguous,
lIe
opposilion
ov
Iinav inpuIses
oJ lIe inleIIecl,
vIicI is Iound
I
lIe
inpelus
lo
|evenluaI
ov
possiIIe)
aclions.
TIus
lecInoIog
is nol lIe
supevcession
oJ lIe
lIing,
Iul ils evev nove enlvencIed J unc-
lioning.
TIe
lIing pevvades lecInoIog,
vIicI
is ils exlension, and exlends lIe Iunan inlo
lIe naleviaI. TIe lasI IeJove us is nol so
nucI lo naIe
lIings
and vesoIve veIalions
inlo
lIings,
nove and nove
ninuleI
Jvaned
and
nicvoscopicaII
undevslood. BalIev, il
na
Ie lo IiIevale nallev Jvon lIe conslvainl,
lIe
pvaclicaIil, uliIil
oJ lIe
lIing,
lo ovienl
lecInoIog
nol so nucI lo
Inoving
and nedi-
aling
as lo
expevience
and lIe vicI indelevni-
nac
oJ duvalion. Inslead oJ
undevslanding
lIe
lIing
and lIe
lecInoIogies
il induces, lIvougI
inleIIecl, in lIe
Bevgsonian sense, pevIaps
il
can aIso Ie
deveIoped lIvougI inluilion, lIal
Bevgsonian appveIension
oJ lIe
unique pavlic-
uIavil
oJ
lIings,
and oJ lIe line vilIin vIicI
lIings
exisl.
FevIaps
lIe
queslion
aIead oJ us nov
is lIis vIal ave lIe condilions oJ
digilizalion
and Iinavizalion? Can ve
pvoduce
lecInoIo-
gies
oJ olIev Iinds? Is
lecInoIog inIevenlI
sinpIiJicalion
and veduclion oJ lIe veaI? WIal
in us is
Ieing
exlended and
pvoslIelicaII
ven-
deved in
lecInoIogicaI deveIopnenl?
Can olIev
veclovs Ie exlended inslead? WIal
nigIl
a
lecInoIog
oJ
pvocesses,
valIev lIan
lIings,
IooI IiIe?
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