Unlike the first generation of critical theorists, contemporary critical theory has largely ignored technology. This is to the detriment of a critical theory of society – technology is now a central feature of our daily lives and integral to the contemporary form of capitalism. Rather than seek to rescue the first generation’s substantive theory of technology, which has been partly outmoded by historical developments, the approach adopted in this article is to engage with today’s technology through the conceptual apparatus offered by the early Frankfurt School. This rationale is guided by the conviction that the core ideas of critical theory still offer a sound basis for assessing the nature of technology today. Through a reconstruction and engagement with some of the core concepts of first-generation critical theory, as well as the work of Bernard Stiegler and Andrew Feenberg, we can arrive at a more robust theory of technology, capable of critically interrogating the role of technology in contemporary society.

与第一代批判理论家不同，当代批判理论在很大程度上忽略了技术。这不利于社会的批判理论-技术现在已成为我们日常生活的中心特征，并且是当代资本主义形式的组成部分。本文所采用的方法不是通过拯救早期法兰克福学派提供的概念性工具，而是试图挽救已被历史发展部分淘汰的第一代技术实质性理论，而是采用当今的技术。这种基本原理是基于这样的信念，即批判理论的核心思想仍然为评估当今技术的性质提供了坚实的基础。通过重建和参与第一代批判理论的一些核心概念，