Customer Reviews

Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition - An Anthology (Blackwell Philosophy Anthologies)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This volume represents an incredible collection of essays from an array of important authors about the philosophy of technology. Reviewing the table of contents alone will make the impression.

Unlike other anthologies, this volume has decent margins and is printed on solid paper stock. If you like marking your texts or putting notes in the sidebar, there is enough room to do so, and the leakage between pages is minimal. Additionally, I found the volume to be solidly bound; for research & reading when you're constantly opening & closing the book, this is critical.

Additionally, almost every selection has a useful bibliography, thus this is a great introductory volume. The introductions to each section/theme are also well done. If I could edit or assemble a collection, I would want it to be this good.

Are you kidding? The book is an encapsulation not only of philosophical thought on technology but also its history and growth. I miss the lack of the asian/eastern/oriental/many-other-categories perspective, but thats the reality of the written english word. Isn't it?

I am sad to say so, but I'm sure that the market for this book is sparse, especially outside the classroom. The only competitive anthology is Kaplan's, which is also available on Amazon. However, the two books have different purposes. Where Kaplan's 'Readings in the Philosophy of Technology" spends most of its time on thinkers from the latter-half of the 20th and early 21st centuries, Dussek's "technological Condition" is oriented more directly toward the classics of the genre (Kaplan's book does not include Jacques Ellul!).

As an anthology, this is not going to suffice as a primary source. However, it would be the text for a course on the subject. With that in mind, note that this volume is not ordered chronologically. Otherwise, this is a great book to keep around for a pre-nap read, or for cues to further, deeper readings within the full work sampled here.

I see no reason not to give this 5 stars.