In Remembering with Things, Dura´n Allimant offers a fresh take on approaches to material culture and technological artifacts. He specifically challenges what he calls an “artisanal paradigm of process and production,” which sees immaterial spirit implant upon unformed physical objects, thus separating the material and immaterial in a way that “ignores the active and constitute role that material things and technical artifacts play in the shaping of forms of life” (p. x). The author does this by incorporating memory—a “disciplinary cross-fertilizer” that links academic knowledge with everyday life (p. xi)—into his phenomenological approach to material culture and technical artifacts. However, while Dura´n Allimant proposes that his text would be accessible to non-specialists across disciplines, especially in science and technology studies, it sits more comfortably within the realm of philosophy, especially philosophy of technology, rather than in a broader science and technology field. That said, for students of memory studies and of philosophy of technology, this book expands the scope of memory, culture, and technology. Recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty.

Choice Reviews

Ronald Durán Allimant makes a first-rate contribution to the phenomenology of artifacts and material culture. His conception of memory as a dynamic process in interaction with things brings a fresh perspective to both the philosophy of technology and practical notions of cultural heritage.

Fernando Broncano, professor of philosophy, University Carlos III de Madrid

Allimant challenges us to consider memory in its material dimension. Analyzing how technical artifacts and images are imbued with memories and history, he offers a rousing conclusion as to how we might mobilize the memory of things to reconsider both the relation between mind and matter, and between nature and culture.

Caterina Zanfi, CNRS, École normale supérieure Paris