Abstract

The iconoclasm of Jacques Ellul toward our modern technique-based civilization forces us out of the comfortable intellectual homes of our specialties that insulate us from ourselves and our world. It tends to provoke strong reactions that either confirm or negate our deepest intuitions. This is further explored by first examining the structure of Ellul's writings as reflecting an iconoclasm toward the way we know the world through science and, second, by examining the content of his work as reflecting an iconoclasm toward the way we act on and live in the world through technique. The analysis concludes by evaluating the influence of technique on education to show the essential role icono clasm must play to ensure a human future. Ellul's analysis is a call to freedom to all those possessed by the technical spirit of our age.