Simone Weil and the Dangerous Myths of Science and Technology
Simone Weil and the Dangerous Myths of Science and Technology
Author(s): Marta Nunes da CostaSubject(s): Politics, Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Science, Government/Political systems
Published by: Axia Academic Publishers
Keywords: Simone Weil; Bureaucratic State; Freedom; Science; Totalitarianism; Uprootedness;
Summary/Abstract: In this article I aim to clarify the role of science and technology in Weil's account of the formation and maintenance of the bureaucratic state as a totalitarian form of State, which allows to identify the similarities between capitalist, fascist and communist regimes. In the first section I characterize Weil's conception of modernity. Having The Need for Roots as my main reference, first, I reconstruct Weil's conceptualization of human nature, after I explore the meanings and signs of uprootedness and Weil's critique of Marxism. In the second section, I analyze the relationship between Revolution, Totalitarianism and the invention of the bureaucratic State. I retake Weil's critique of Marx and the Marxists arguing that science and technology must be subjected to a new criticism today, for they have been reduced to mere means of a totalitarian logic, which ultimately reinforces social oppression. I conclude by rescuing Weil's defense of the fundamental value of individual freedom and of thought, for our humanity lies in it.
Journal: Labyrinth: An International Journal for Philosophy, Value Theory and Sociocultural Hermeneutics
- Issue Year: 25/2023
- Issue No: 1
- Page Range: 136-156
- Page Count: 21
- Language: English