Clinamen

I've proposed the following paper for next year's NCA conference in San Antonio. This proposal is part of a panel on "Trope Hijacking":

Hijacking Scapegoats: Kenneth Burke, Technology, and the ‘Doctrine of Use’

Kenneth Burke is a well-known trope hijacker. He makes use of mathematical terms by calling his pentad a “calculus” and co-opts scientific terms such as “biologism.” The “technological psychosis” is one trope that occupies Burke throughout his career, figuring prominently in much of his later work. In his “Towards Hellhaven” essays, Burke presents a particularly dystopic view of technological society. In this presentation, I argue that Burke uses technology as a scapegoat (in his sense of the term) to exercise demons. Burke’s problem is not so much with technology but with “doctrine of use” that he traces back to utilitarianism. His interest in the ambivalence and slippage of language and his embrace of Bohemianism show us that Burke sees the value of a life not bound up with ideas of utility or efficiency. Yet, Burke’s analysis is always conducted with an eye toward how the study of language can be of great use. For Burke, language is of great utility – a technology for understanding human motive. Using Burke's scapegoatism to interrogate his views of technology, this paper hijacks the hijacker. However, my goal will not be to “debunk” (another of his favorite tropes) Burke’s views of technology. Rather, I hope to show that a discourse of utility, though difficult to escape, stops us from productively theorizing technology.