Philosophy of Technology and the Continental and Analytic Traditions

Abstract

During the past fifty-odd years, philosophy of technology has been nurtured by two distinct philosophical traditions, the continental and the analytic, with the former at first sight dominating. On closer scrutiny, however, it appears that philosophy of technology’s borrowings from the continental tradition have been superficial and eclectic at best, and philosophy of technology cannot be said to be firmly rooted in either continental or analytic philosophy. Yet the felt contrast, or even antagonism, between these traditions has arguably prevented the field from acknowledging that it failed to develop an encompassing conception of technology and from contemplating as a serious possibility that the phenomenon of technology may be so large as to escape such a definition. In response, this chapter proposes to think of philosophy of technology as composed of three subfields, and it makes suggestions on how the particular strengths of analytic and continental philosophy can contribute to these subfields.