--- product_id: 6276448 title: "The Technological Society" price: "R689" currency: ZAR in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.co.za/products/6276448-the-technological-society store_origin: ZA region: South Africa --- # The Technological Society **Price:** R689 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Technological Society - **How much does it cost?** R689 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.za](https://www.desertcart.co.za/products/6276448-the-technological-society) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description The Technological Society [Jacques Ellul, John Wilkinson, Robert K. Merton] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Technological Society Review: Technique - the bedrock of the modern world - Before proceeding with this review, let me just say that no fewer than a hundred pages could be trimmed from its content without diluting its message at all. Many of the examples used in the book are extremely dated; while I think I'm fairly well read, I confess that I'm not really up on the vicissitudes and catfights of French academic sociology in the early 1960's (to give but one example). With that being said, this book is worth well worth the time spent reading its 436 pages. This is undoubtedly one of the most important books of the twentieth century, and if you accept its thesis you won't be able to look at the political milieu in the same way ever again. (If you agree with it and it doesn't change the way you look at things, you haven't grasped its importance.) Most political theorists take ideology to be a central point from which "real world" consequences emanate. In other words, a Communist or libertarian ideology in practical use will produce a particular type society and individual divorced from the actual technical workings of the society. Liberals and conservatives both speak of things in such a manner as if ideology is the prima facie cause of existence - but as Ellul shows in painstaking detail, this is wrong. What almost everyone fails to grasp is the pernicious effect of technique (and its offspring, technology) on modern man. Technique can loosely be defined as the entire mass of organization and technology that has maximum efficiency as its goal. Ellul shows that technique possesses an impetus all its own and exerts similar effects on human society no matter what the official ideology of the society in question is. Technique, with its never-ending quest for maximum efficiency, tends to slowly drown out human concerns as it progresses towards its ultimate goal. "...the further economic technique develops, the more it makes real the abstract concept of economic man." (p. 219) Technique does not confine itself merely to the realm of technical production, but infiltrates every aspect of human existence, and has no time for "inefficiencies" caused by loyalties to family, religion, race, or culture; a society of dumbed-down consumers is absolutely essential to the technological society, which must contain predictable "demographics" in order to ensure the necessary financial returns. "The only thing that matters technically is yield, production. This is the law of technique; this yield can only be obtained by the total mobilization of human beings, body and soul, and this implies the exploitation of all human psychic forces." (p. 324). Ellul thoroughly shows that much of the difference in ideology between libertarians and socialists becomes largely irrelevant in the technological society (this is not to say that ideology is unimportant, but rather that technique proceeds with the same goals and effects.) This will doubtlessly please no one; liberals want to believe that they can have privacy and freedom despite a high degree of central planning, and libertarians want to believe that a society free of most regulation and control is possible in an advanced technological society. Libertarian fantasies seem especially irrelevant given the exigencies of a technological society; as Ellul notes, as technique progresses it simply cannot function without a high degree of complexity and regulation. "The modern state could no more be a state without techniques than a businessman could be a businessman without the telephone or the automobile... not only does it need techniques, but techniques need it. It is not a matter of chance, nor a matter of conscious will; rather, it is an urgency..." (p. 253-254). Can anyone really doubt Ellul here, especially seeing as how twenty-plus years of conservative promises to downsize government still result in more regulation and bureaucracy with every passing year? Planning, socialism, regulation, and control are the natural consequences of technique; an increasingly incestuous relationship between industry and the State is inevitable. "The state and technique - increasingly interrelated - are becoming the most important forces in the modern world; they buttress and reinforce each other in their aim to produce an apparently indestructible, total civilization." (p. 318). This is not an optimistic book. Given that the nature of technique is one of a universal leveling of human cultures, needs, and desires (replacing real needs with false ones and the neighborhood restaurant with McDonalds), Ellul is certainly pessimistic. He does not propose any remedies for the Skinnerist nightmares of technique somehow leading to a Golden Age of humanity, where people will enjoy maximal freedom coupled with minimal want: "...we are struck by the incredible naivete of these scientists... they claim they will be in a position to develop certain collective desires, to constitute certain homogeneous social units out of aggregates of individuals, to forbid men to raise their children, and even to persuade them to renounce having any... at the same time, they speak of assuring the triumph of freedom and of the necessity of avoiding dictatorship... they seem incapable of grasping the contradiction involved, or of understanding that what they are proposing." (p. 434). Review: Profound analysis of modern culture and future trends - Profound and disturbing analysis and understanding of the technical forces that shape modern life. It raises equally troubling questions about our ability to shape or adapt to these changes. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #36,168 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #29 in Social Aspects of Technology #97 in Engineering (Books) #124 in History & Theory of Politics | | Customer Reviews | 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars (315) | | Dimensions | 4.18 x 1.25 x 6.89 inches | | ISBN-10 | 0394703901 | | ISBN-13 | 978-0394703909 | | Item Weight | 11.2 ounces | | Language | English | | Print length | 449 pages | | Publication date | January 1, 1964 | | Publisher | Vintage Books | ## Images ![The Technological Society - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61+C71fBDAL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Technique - the bedrock of the modern world *by P***N on June 8, 2004* Before proceeding with this review, let me just say that no fewer than a hundred pages could be trimmed from its content without diluting its message at all. Many of the examples used in the book are extremely dated; while I think I'm fairly well read, I confess that I'm not really up on the vicissitudes and catfights of French academic sociology in the early 1960's (to give but one example). With that being said, this book is worth well worth the time spent reading its 436 pages. This is undoubtedly one of the most important books of the twentieth century, and if you accept its thesis you won't be able to look at the political milieu in the same way ever again. (If you agree with it and it doesn't change the way you look at things, you haven't grasped its importance.) Most political theorists take ideology to be a central point from which "real world" consequences emanate. In other words, a Communist or libertarian ideology in practical use will produce a particular type society and individual divorced from the actual technical workings of the society. Liberals and conservatives both speak of things in such a manner as if ideology is the prima facie cause of existence - but as Ellul shows in painstaking detail, this is wrong. What almost everyone fails to grasp is the pernicious effect of technique (and its offspring, technology) on modern man. Technique can loosely be defined as the entire mass of organization and technology that has maximum efficiency as its goal. Ellul shows that technique possesses an impetus all its own and exerts similar effects on human society no matter what the official ideology of the society in question is. Technique, with its never-ending quest for maximum efficiency, tends to slowly drown out human concerns as it progresses towards its ultimate goal. "...the further economic technique develops, the more it makes real the abstract concept of economic man." (p. 219) Technique does not confine itself merely to the realm of technical production, but infiltrates every aspect of human existence, and has no time for "inefficiencies" caused by loyalties to family, religion, race, or culture; a society of dumbed-down consumers is absolutely essential to the technological society, which must contain predictable "demographics" in order to ensure the necessary financial returns. "The only thing that matters technically is yield, production. This is the law of technique; this yield can only be obtained by the total mobilization of human beings, body and soul, and this implies the exploitation of all human psychic forces." (p. 324). Ellul thoroughly shows that much of the difference in ideology between libertarians and socialists becomes largely irrelevant in the technological society (this is not to say that ideology is unimportant, but rather that technique proceeds with the same goals and effects.) This will doubtlessly please no one; liberals want to believe that they can have privacy and freedom despite a high degree of central planning, and libertarians want to believe that a society free of most regulation and control is possible in an advanced technological society. Libertarian fantasies seem especially irrelevant given the exigencies of a technological society; as Ellul notes, as technique progresses it simply cannot function without a high degree of complexity and regulation. "The modern state could no more be a state without techniques than a businessman could be a businessman without the telephone or the automobile... not only does it need techniques, but techniques need it. It is not a matter of chance, nor a matter of conscious will; rather, it is an urgency..." (p. 253-254). Can anyone really doubt Ellul here, especially seeing as how twenty-plus years of conservative promises to downsize government still result in more regulation and bureaucracy with every passing year? Planning, socialism, regulation, and control are the natural consequences of technique; an increasingly incestuous relationship between industry and the State is inevitable. "The state and technique - increasingly interrelated - are becoming the most important forces in the modern world; they buttress and reinforce each other in their aim to produce an apparently indestructible, total civilization." (p. 318). This is not an optimistic book. Given that the nature of technique is one of a universal leveling of human cultures, needs, and desires (replacing real needs with false ones and the neighborhood restaurant with McDonalds), Ellul is certainly pessimistic. He does not propose any remedies for the Skinnerist nightmares of technique somehow leading to a Golden Age of humanity, where people will enjoy maximal freedom coupled with minimal want: "...we are struck by the incredible naivete of these scientists... they claim they will be in a position to develop certain collective desires, to constitute certain homogeneous social units out of aggregates of individuals, to forbid men to raise their children, and even to persuade them to renounce having any... at the same time, they speak of assuring the triumph of freedom and of the necessity of avoiding dictatorship... they seem incapable of grasping the contradiction involved, or of understanding that what they are proposing." (p. 434). ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Profound analysis of modern culture and future trends *by J***L on March 11, 2026* Profound and disturbing analysis and understanding of the technical forces that shape modern life. It raises equally troubling questions about our ability to shape or adapt to these changes. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Perhaps the Most Important Book Ever Written Examining and Critquing the Modern Technological Society and Globalization! *by K***R on March 2, 2013* I loved this book! It was rather tough to get through and somewhat dry and boring in many parts, but the information and thought put into this text is top notch. I do not think I am overstating when I say that Jacques Ellul's The Technological Society is probably one of the most important works of the 20th Century, which is probably why it is off the radar of most people (the technological society tends to protect itself by ignoring its obvious faults and all useful critiques). The text is translated by John Wilkinson and is a whopping 450+ pages (introductions, notes and index included). It explains what 'technique' is, 'technique' and economy, 'technique' and the state, human techniques, and where we are headed. If you ever heard of a 'New World Order' or you thought it was all a bunch of hooey, then you need to read this book. The 'New World Order' is not a noun or pronoun, but a philosophical term used by many (I'll admit not directly by Jacques Ellul) to indicate a change in the world system, and a signficant change in the world system or order and its effects is exactly what this book is about! Jacques Ellul (from his Christian perspective) pretty much calls the Technological Society Behemoth or, The Beast. Don't get me wrong! Jacques Ellul does not take a religious stance, but more of a logical "it then follows" or "is already apparent" stance. His 'Behemoth' commentary is merely his own subjective way of describing the obvious. This is a great book that can and will open your eyes to how the world really works and where it is most likely headed. Whether you agree with Ellul or not, you will be a better person and much more informed if you take the time to read this text. Jacques Ellul's The Technological Society is, in my opinion, one of the most important books you can ever read and it should be required reading in every school (and homeschooling group) everywhere. There are certain books which have a profound impact upon your consciousness, and although I knew much of what Ellul stated beforehand due to my interests, I cannot recommend this book enough. If I could I would give this book 10 stars and will emphatically state that it should be in everyone's required reading library. ## Frequently Bought Together - The Technological Society - Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes - The Meaning of the City (Jacques Ellul Legacy) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co.za/products/6276448-the-technological-society](https://www.desertcart.co.za/products/6276448-the-technological-society) --- *Product available on Desertcart South Africa* *Store origin: ZA* *Last updated: 2026-04-23*