Opening the stacks
Opening the stacks
A concept by Stiegler referring to the externalized memory supported by technical means like writing or recordings, which stabilizes knowledge outside individual consciousness.
2 chapters across 1 book
The chapter examines the intricate relationship between geometry, time, and technics in Western philosophy, highlighting how geometry spatializes and exteriorizes time through technical means, enabling mechanization and logical inference. It contrasts this with Chinese conceptions of time, which emphasize cyclical occasions (shi) embedded in natural rhythms, leading to fundamentally different technological philosophies. Drawing on Bernard Stiegler's concept of tertiary retention and Plato's anamnesis, the chapter underscores how technical exteriorization of memory facilitates the temporalization and transmission of knowledge across generations.
The chapter examines Heidegger’s notion of authentic historicity through Dasein’s resoluteness and being-towards-death, contrasting it with the alienating objectified history critiqued by Heidegger. It incorporates Stiegler’s concept of tertiary retention to reveal how technological unconsciousness simultaneously destroys tradition and fosters a desire to preserve memory. The chapter culminates in recognizing the end of modernity as the realization that technics fundamentally conditions human existence and historicity, reframing Western philosophy through the myth of Prometheus and Epimetheus to highlight technology's foundational role.