Notes on the Question of Technology in Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer’s Dialectic of Enlightenment

Abstract

The theme of this article is technology. Thus, the main scope of this paper will be to reflect on the presence of technology as an essential element of the human experience today. And the hypothesis that will guide our reflections is that the uncritical use of technology, especially in the educational field, has negative consequences for the formative experience, especially when it objectifies thinking and intensifies the process of reification of human relations. The methodology adopted was a bibliographic review and it is expected, as a result, that this text will stimulate reflection on the presence of technology in the formation (Bildung) of the human being and on the role of philosophy in this context.

Keywords: Technology; Instrumental reason; Formative experience; Philosophy; Theodor Adorno.