Cultural and ontological foundations of technology: the reconstruction of Prometheus

Abstract

The actuality of the topic is due to a number of contradictions arising under the influence of technology (speed of spread and inertia of institutions, availability of access to technologies and lack of knowledge about them, etc.) and the need to articulate its cultural and ontological conditions, one of which is prometheia-installation. The purpose of the article is the culturalontological reconstruction of prometheia-installation as a culture-forming attitude to the existence and functioning of the phenomenon of technics in archetypal, etymological-semantic, polemical, anomal, existential, prosthetic cuts. Methodology of the research originates from the principles of historicity, complementarity, organicity and involves the use of the possibilities of descriptive, etymological, hermeneutic, structuralistic, dialectical approaches. With the help of the description, a review of previous publications related to the topic of the study is carried out, the reception of the image of Prometheus in European culture is marked, and the actual field of research is outlined. With the help of the etymological approach, the semantic nuances of the concepts «Prometheus», «promethêia», «têchne», «sophίa», etc. With the help of hermeneutics, the content of the Platonic myth about Prometheus, Epimetheus, the origin of mankind is connected with the works of Hesiod, Aeschylus, and some concepts are also interpreted, for example: «entêchnos sophίa», «tȳphles elpídes», etc. The possibilities of the structuralist approach could articulate a number of oppositions «gods / titans», «gods / people», «guilt / punishment», etc. Finally, the methodical aspects of dialectics articulate the fundamental contradiction of the phenomenon of technology in human being. The results of the research are, firstly, the determination of what a culture-forming installation is as such and the individual, collective, conscious and unconscious aspects of its productive nature are indicated here. Secondly, the religious, aesthetic, and philosophical contexts of the archetypal cut of prometheia-installation are outlined. Thirdly, an etymological-semantic analysis of the name Prometheus was carried out, and on this basis its meaningful aspects were clarified: intentional (orientation towards the future), gnostic (aspiration for accurate knowledge), existential (caring), axiological (honoring). Fourthly, the polemic cut of prometheia-installation is analyzed in a number of aspects: genetic (conflict between Zeus and Prometheus), psychological (pride), incident (stealing fire, crafts with arts and wisdom), teleological (punishment), act (blind hopes). Fifthly, it is outlined that in the anomic cut of promethia-installation, the guilt / punishment binary has a fundamental character in the form of a violation of divine laws (stealing fire, crafts with arts and wisdom). Sixthly, in the existential cut of prometheia-installation, the mechanism of waiting and overcoming the fear of death is articulated. Seventhly, an outline of the prosthetic nature of technology in terms of a prioriness and mediativity, interiorization and exteriorization, being and non-being is given. In the conclusions, the substantive aspects of, firstly, the culture-forming attitude as such, and secondly, Prometheus within the substantive limits of archetypal, etymological-semantic, polemical, anomic, existential, prosthetic sections are given, as well as the following research horizons are indicated.