Leroi-Gourhan and the Object of Technology

The emphasis on technical artifacts is a hallmark of contemporary philosophy of technology. How can Leroi-Gourhan’s conceptualization of the technical object enrich current discussions among philosophers of technology? This article aims not to exhaustively address this question but to briefly outline how Leroi-Gourhan, as an ethnologist, reconfigures the concept of the technical object inherited from ethnology. The article begins by presenting Leroi-Gourhan's ambition to revisit the central question of ethnology: what is the origin of the division of the human mass into distinct ethnic units called “peoples”, distributed across the globe? According to Leroi-Gourhan, ethnology did not divide humanity at its natural junctures, leading to inaccurate historical conclusions. For him, “peoples” are not fixed and uniform entities defined by constant, specific characteristics. Instead, they arise from the temporary convergence of traits, such as language and technology, which have their own independent existence. These traits may come together at a certain point, but beyond that, they diverge. Ethnology should focus on these traits, not on the “peoples.” In particular, technology serves as a reliable indicator of how the human mass has been divided and dispersed across space and time. However, to draw solid conclusions on this matter, it is essential to approach the extensive technical documentation with a rigorous method of classification and analysis. The article examines this method, leading Leroi-Gourhan to redefine the very concept of the technical object. The article highlights Leroi-Gourhan's focus on the concepts of “fact” and “tendency” in his analysis of technical objects. These objects are viewed both as solutions to general human challenges in transforming matter (representing “tendencies”) and as culturally significant items with varying “degrees of fact.” Thus, Leroi-Gourhan assigned a dual nature to technical objects, but in a way that differs significantly from the current analytical philosophy of technical artifacts.