Dynamics of Modern Society

Abstract

In this paper, we would like to present a framework to understand our nowadays society. First we review various arguments on the trend of our age, and point out the problems to be considered. Then, to solve the problems, we adopt the concept “paradigm” refered from “language game”. According to Wittgenstein, “language game” is the whole of interactions between members in a group, and the members refer to “paradigm” regarded as transcendentally exists to play their “language game”. “Language game” corresponds to the social activity and “paradigm” to a view of social life, we think. Therefore, we can see the social movement as the sequence of interactions of the several paradigms existing in the society.At the beginning of the Modern Age, three types of automated machines were born. Clock, automata, and computer. They have represented three main paradigms specifying the social dynamics from Modern Age to our age, we think. We can examine this hypothesis by analysing the history. And we confirm that the social movement can be explained by inconsistency among paradigms represented by the machines mentioned above, which have been coexistent in the society.From consideration above, we conclude that : Our age will not proceed to pre-Modern society, totally controlled society, nor grass-roots network society spontaneously as insisted in the arguments refered first. Our age is a “language game” refering to “machine creating machines”. So, we must consider what and how machines are to be created from now on.