Open Access Book by Bart van der Sloot: “Commonly attributed to the oracle of Delphi, the classic Greek maxim “Know thyself” is in fact much older. Although emblematic, its meaning is by no means unambiguous, even within Greek antiquity. Originally, it served as a call to humility: know your limits, know your place. One was cautioned not to think too highly of oneself, but to recognise the self as a minuscule fragment subject to the caprices of the gods, constrained by societal rules and bodily needs. Later, especially through the work of Plato, the maxim took on a different—perhaps even antithetical—meaning, shifting towards self-knowledge and introspection.1 While not entirely undone of its original undertone, it increasingly came to symbolise humanity’s intellectual capacity for self-understanding and self-correction. In this guise, it was revitalised during the Enlightenment as a credo of individual autonomy.
This book is about both sides of that coin. It explores the myriad ways in which humans are shaped by society, bound by personal histories, and constrained by physical and cognitive limitations. As will become evident, man is an ambivalent being—often far more fragile than his intellectual bravado would suggest. If there is a universal human experience, it is one of limitation, misjudgement, and failure. At the same time, like no other creature, man possesses the unique capacity for self-reflection and self-improvement. Humanity, for better or worse, has managed to bring vast stretches of the universe under its dominion, perpetually striving to refine and master itself. In modern Western culture, autonomy stands perhaps as the ultimate aspiration, and being autonomous as the highest of all aspirations.
Technology can deepen this rift—who has not felt a tinge of shame upon viewing their weekly screen time?—but it also amplifies our capacities, granting us ever greater control over ourselves and our environments, if only through the gentle prodding of fitness apps reminding us that we have yet to meet our daily step count. Yet while it augments self-regulation, it also grants technology companies unprecedented insight into our inner conflicts,…(More)”.
