Download Communication as Techne

Communication as Techne
Jonathan Sterne: PhD, Univ. of Illinois (Communication), Associate Professor McGill
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Techne: The term Techne can also be interpreted as practical art, or a set of practical arts and
knowledge.
How does Techne relate to communication?
*Conversation, media systems, human-animal interaction, & the dimensions of encounters with
others ect.
According to Jonathan Sterne, “Communication is, above all else, a techne”. Pg. 91
Episteme: Episteme is a word used to describe formal theory, scientific knowledge, facts & theories.
This is the area that techne needs to be distinguished from because techne is embodied knowledge
(routines, habits, tasks and information our bodies "understand" without conscious thought)
Aristotle’s Interpretation
* Techne meant both the
process of producing things in
the world and the capacity of
knowledge of consistency and
the accounts for that
production.
* Example:
The process of producing
things: A person making their
favorite pasta. “Spaghetti”
The capacity of knowledge:
The previous knowledge a
person must have to be able to
make spaghetti.
Techne is “Embodied Logic”
* Every type of techne
(practical art) is going to vary
from culture to culture.
* Going off from the previous
example:
* Even though the person is
practicing an art by cooking
their favorite dish of spaghetti,
this is very personal and is their
own “EMBODIED” sense of
what spaghetti is supposed to
taste like.
* In the end, everyone has his
or her own recipe same dishes.
Techne as Metaphor
* In the end, techne is a
metaphor for communication in
general. Techne as a practical
art has many benefits (Social,
Political, Emotional).
* Personal action is tied in
with a larger sense of social
awareness.
*Meaning, everything must
be accounted for within our
communication processes
even if our action is
spontaneous because
everything is possible due to
our vast previous knowledge.
Modern Techne…….
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Techne has given way to two terms that designate some of the most important aspects of
communication: TECHNIQUE AND TECHNOLOGY
Both terms share the ambiguity between the “Actual” and the “Possible” with the dual
connotation of the practical arts.
Techne not only shows the skills of those people practicing the practical arts, but the talents
that each individual has to begin with.
Modern Media & Techne
* Even though the media can be viewed in a broad scope, modern media is made up of different types
of techne. Examples: Journalism, photos, paintings, advertising, ect (Almost anything in the modern
media that can be seen as a collective practice can be called techne; also known in the communication
world as an “Aggregate”)
Discussion Questions
1) Name 1-3 practical arts “Techne”, that you see yourself participating in on a daily basis? What
made you first decide to participate in them and have your feelings towards them changed since you
initially started? Examples: Dancing, singing, cooking, computer technology, ect. Hint: Aggregates.
2) Do you agree that techne is an embodied sensibility and will vary from culture to culture? Why or
why not? Find an example of techne is another culture besides your own and compare it with
American culture.