A Study Of Ellul’s Idea Of Technological Autonomy

The rapid development of science and technology has become a distinctive feature of today’s world,where the development of man and society is becoming more and more technologically oriented and where the dominance of man is threatened by technology.As early as the 1950 s the famous French philosopher of technology,Ellul’s,was acutely aware of the autonomous and uncontrollable nature of modern technological development and hoped that through his efforts he could awaken mankind,which was immersed in technological desire.Although his ideas on technological autonomy may be exaggerated and have aroused controversy in academic circles,it is important to understand and grasp his ideas on technological autonomy for the development of human society at a time when technologicaldevelopment is changing rapidly.The humanist bias in Ellul’s theory of technological autonomy actually stems from his social and academic background,with Marx’s idea of "alienation" and Habermas’ s social-critical theory serving as important theoretical foundations for Ellul’s idea of technological autonomy.To some extent,his religious beliefs also contributed to the richness of his thought,but it was his Christian theological beliefs that eventually led to a change in his academic position.The theory of technological autonomy constitutes the core of Ellul’s technological thought.This article firstly clarifies the definition and characteristics of technology and the concept of technological autonomy;secondly,it briefly analyses the three levels: the internal logic and rules of technological development,the technologisation of society and the technologised existence of man.In fact,these two parts roughly constitute the entire theoretical content of Ellul’s idea of technological autonomy.On this basis,he discusses the preconditions needed to overcome technological autonomy and Ellul’s critique of the power ethic.Although the road to restoring human freedom is fraught with obstacles,Ellul never gives up on finding a way out of the dilemma of technological autonomy and aims to establish an "ethics of non-power" to restore human freedom.The paper concludes with a brief exposition of the limitations and contemporary relevance of Ellul’s thought.Although Ellul initially developed and enriched his theory on the basis of his inheritance of Marx’s philosophical thought,he ultimately chose to depart from Marx due to his religious beliefs,leaving the theory of technical autonomy gradually out of practice.Although there are certain flaws in Ellul’s theory of technological autonomy,it will still be a profound inspiration for human beings to engage in social practice in a rational manner.