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Technology and Time Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 8-2003 Technology and Time Jon Van Wieren Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Sociology Commons Recommended Citation Van Wieren, Jon, "Technology and Time" (2003). Master's Theses. 4110. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4110 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TECHNOLOGY ANDTIME by Jon Van Wieren A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Sociology Western MichiganUniversity Kalamazoo, Michigan August 2003 © 2003 Jon Van Wieren TECHNOLOGY AND TIME Jon Van Wieren, M.A. Western Michigan University, 2003 This thesis sets out to further reveal the technology and time interrelationship in human society. It is through an investigation of an array of sociological, theoretical, philosophical, historical and artistic responses to modernity that this relationship is explored. Primary analytic focus is placed on two contemporary authors who have addressed the technology and time relationship. These authors are Manuel Castells and Paul Virilio. Castells and Virilio offer two distinct portraits of the modem-technological world. By contrasting these authors' projects, methods and intellectual heritage, the question of technology and time is further scrutinized. Advanced here is an argument that time is an essential dimension of social life deserving of greater attention within sociology and related fields. Correspondingly, the role of technology in relation to human understanding of time cannot be ignored. Additionally, it is held that in order to sufficiently address technology and time as social phenomena, a step beyond timeless causal analysis need be made. It is argued that sociology might be served rather than de­ legitimated by the incorporation of a world-historical outlook and a consideration of metaphysics, human being, will and destiny. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY.............................................................. 1 II. AN OVERVIEWOF CASTELLS AND VIRILIO......................................... 6 Backgrounds............................................................................................. 8 Castells' Background............................................................................ 8 Virilio's Background............................................................................ 9 Methods.................................................................................................... 11 Castells' Method.................................................................................. 11 Virilio's Method................................................................................... 12 Projects..................................................................................................... 15 Castells' Project.................................................................................... 15 Virilio's Project.................................................................................... 18 On Time................................................................................................... 21 Castells On Time................................................................................. 22 Virilio On Time................................................................................... 26 On Time: Conclusion.............................................................................. 30 Ways of Knowing..................................................................................... 31 III. THE SOCIOLOGY OF TIME........................................................................ 35 The Sociology of Time: A Few Examples.............................................. 35 Social Analysis of Time: Technology and Time..................................... 43 11 Table of Contents---continued CHAPTER IV. THE INTELLECTUAL - ONTOLOGICAL BACKGROUNDS OF CASTELLS AND VIRILIO............................................................................ 48 Castells' Ontological Background........................................................... 49 Marx and the Materialist Conception of History................................ 51 Harvey and the Materialist Conception of Time................................. 54 Virilio's Ontological Background........................................................... 61 Virilio and the Military Conception of History.................................. 62 Merleau-Ponty and the Body.............................................................. 65 Virilio's Phenomenological Understanding of Time: A Focus on Kant, Husserl, and Heidegger............................................................. 69 Greek Time, Christian Time................................................................ 69 Kant..................................................................................................... 70 Husserl................................................................................................ 73 Heidegger............................................................................................ 78 Conclusion: Two Understandings and Approaches Toward Social Time.............................................................................................. 88 V. TIME OF TECHNOLOGY, TECHNOLOGIES OF TIME........................... 91 Time of Technology: Modernity............................................................. 94 Technologies of Time.............................................................................. 101 Past...................................................................................................... 102 Present............ :.................................................................................... 104 Future/Speed........................................................................................ 107 111 Table of Contents-continued CHAPTER Castells and Virilio: Technologies of HyperModemity.................... ....... 110 Castells and Technologies of Time...................................................... 111 Virilio and Technologies of Time........................................................ 116 Conclusion................................................................................................ 123 VI. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................ 125 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................ 129 IV CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION TO THESTUDY This thesis is about technology and time. Technology and time are two infinitely broad topics, each possessing multiple levels of meaning. As a sociological thesis, the topics of technology and time are imagined here not as natural or physical phenomena, but rather as social phenomena. In thinking of technology and time as social things, we set aside the role of technical engineer or physicist who might study their natural or physical properties, and instead look to the presence and impact of these phenomena within human society. Time, as a social phenomenon, is thought of here both in terms of experienced duration, where "our time" signifies the available now, and in terms of history, where "our time" signifies the era in which we live. Technology will remain largely undefined throughout this thesis. In an absolute sense, this is the thesis question. However, two images of technology might be distinguished here. Technology is thought of both in terms of its material (actual/physical technologies) and cultural (institutions, practices and beliefs) representations within society. Presented over the following pages is an attempt to address an admittedly broad question, an unanswerable question perhaps. More specifically, the question of interest relates to a hypothesized phenomenon of "time-compression" which is believed to be brought on by certain modem technologies. This phenomenon is envisaged through a theoretical and historical perspective. The method and approach of this thesis is less counter-action to perceived sociological trends than representative of its author's preferred method of investigating social things. Foremost, it is the purpose of this thesis to synthesize an array of empirical and theoretical writings on technology and time. In providing an analytic foundation, two contemporary authors concerned with the question(s) of technology and time are compared; these authors are Manuel Castells and Paul Virilio. Chapter 2 serves well as an introduction to their background and work. The comparison and contrast of Castells and Virilio provides the analytic grounds from which this thesis develops. Several related inquires stem from these grounds, but never so far as to disconnect or lose a sense of cohesive statement; a statement which should be clear before the end. Following this introductory chapter is an overview of Castells' and Virilio's work. Chapter 2 outlines the key ideas and themes from Castells' and Virilio's writings and provides the foundation from which the rest of this project stems. Accordingly, the rest of this thesis will work to uproot some of the assumptions and
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