The Temptation of Not Being or Ontological Roots of Technological Outsourcing

Abstract

This article gives an ontological interpretation of so-called technological outsourcing. It understands the latter as a trend of labour and role delegation from humans to machines. The author posits that the trend of techno outsourcing is not autonomous but a continuation of an earlier phenomenon, namely the ontological temptation or the temptation of not being. The article show cases a number of reasons, capable of compelling a person to chose not to be. Those serve as a basis for author’s next point, that the ontological temptation is exacerbated by recent technological developments. The author draws on Baudrillard and Heidegger for philosophical foundations. According to Baudrillard the temptation is rooted in an attraction, a human experiences towards pure but hollow form, they consider to be attainable as a commodity. According to Heidegger a human is bereft of essence and is supposed to occur as an event. They are given a chance to be. It is up to a human to seize this chance of pass on it. Being is a risky venture, and there are reasons not to undertake it. Those risks lead to humans reducing their state of being. The article describes such an attempt, traceable to Descartes, of reducing a human to a actor, substantiating themselves. The article claims that when a human is reduced to a function the fear of unfulfillment drives them to give in to a temptation of not being.