Is this the real truth of the post-human; that our interactions with new information and communication technologies mean the end of 'class' and thus the end of the left as traditionally conceived?
See below for Baudrillard's thoughts on this
"Am I man or am I machine? In the relationship between workers and traditional machines, there is no ambiguity whatsoever. The worker is always estranged form the machine and is therefore alienated by it. He keeps the precious quality of alienated man to himself. Whilst new technology, new machines, new images, interactive screens do not alienate me at all. With me they form an integrated circuit"
Neil Turnbull
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Its a difficult one. it touches on what we were discussing after the 'academocracy' presentation. That the left as we know it does not, and cannot exist in a traditional sense. whether it is possible or necessary to maintain a position of suspicion, critique, and dissent against modes of domination and oppression is another matter that would require a mind greater than mine to muse on. I do think there are interesting examples of post-human oppression and rebellion in science fiction. huxley's 'brave new world' has workers chemically transformed and raised specifically for their tasks. Perhaps we will see technological adjustments to man, making it easier to utilise the productivity of workers (i mean workers in a sense not necessarily reliant on manual labour of course).
ReplyDeleteof course, as has been mentioned, the subject itself will not be able to rebel against that technology as an object of oppression and the means of its alienation because it is partly constituted by that technology. Perhaps this would be the end of class war, and even revolution in general, irrelevant of the source of dissent. Have you seen the film 'Surrogate'? its terrible but I reccomend watching it. Its set in the near future. People stay at home operating robot likenesses of themselves. these are the only connection people have to each other and the outside world. Companies use the populations' fear of contagious diseases and their obsession with designable personas to keep people in doors and consuming the robotic products
ReplyDeleteSends a chill down my spine!
ReplyDeleteYes, but isn't there a relationship between the post-human technological condition and the rise of post-humanism, a la Foucault, Lacan etc?
ReplyDeleteIf so, this might be even more chilling!
Neil Turnbull