Description
Reflection Paper #1: Technological Determinism
Instructions: Drawing on material from Part I of the course, explain the concept of technological determinism and indicate which theorists are associated with the concept. What does this concept suggest about the relationship between technology and society? What critiques have been levelled at the concept? Finally, explain whether you think that technological determinism is a useful way to conceptualize the relationship between technology and society, using examples from the readings to support all claims. You may also include an example from your own experience. Include a full list of references using a style guide.
Resource: You do not need to conduct any external research for this assignment. The Purdue Online Writing Lab provides an excellent overview of MLA, APA, and Chicago style guides. Include page numbers for all quotes, paraphrasing, and specific author ideas that you borrow.
Format: 500-600 words (approx. 2 pages double-spaced), due on cuLearn by 10:35am on Oct 2 and in hard copy at the beginning of your discussion group that day. Submit a .doc or .pdf file, and name your file with your last name.
Readings from Part I:
Williams, Raymond. “Communication,” “Media,” and “Mediation” in Keywords: A Vocabulary of Culture and Society, New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. 72-73, 203-207.
Peters, John Durham. “Introduction: The Problem of Communication” Speaking into the Air: A History of the Idea of Communication Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1999. 1-31.
Eisenstein, Elizabeth “The Emergence of Print Culture in the West” Journal of Communication (Winter 1980): 99-106.
Carr, Nicholas “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” The Atlantic July/August 2008 https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/306868/
Innis, Harold A. “Introduction” and “Egypt” Empire and Communications Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1950. 1-29.
McLuhan, Marshall “The Later Innis” Queen’s Quarterly 60 (1953): 385-394.
“Marshall McLuhan’s theory of the global village” (CBC, 1960) and “The Future of Man in the Electric Age” (BBC, 1965)