One of the books I read this summer was Shop Class as Soulcraft by Matthew B. Crawford. I don’ line up for every philosophical treatise that comes down the pike, but this one really peaked my interest. It deals with our evolving relationship with “things” and how we view them, as well as the denigrating view taken of youths who choose to go into “the trades” rather than heading off to college to join the “knowledge economy.” This is the subject of my column this week at Pajamas Media, Tinkerers No More.
As I discuss in the article, being a tinker was once a noble and highly valued profession. The tinker, or tinsmith, was responsible for the height of existing technology in the fifteenth and sixteen century. Today, it exists as a surname, but in terms of verbs it has taken on a decided negative connotation. (“Don’t tinker with that!”) There was a time when you bought a new blender for your kitchen and the instructions came with an exploded view of the inner workings and a parts list with information where to find replacement components. Today a new blender requires special tools and an advanced degree just to pop the damned thing open and the instructions come with a toll free number and a web site where you can order a new blender.
We don’t fix things any more and we increasingly don’t make things. And we don’t place value on those who choose to follow a career path where they do make or fix things. Is this an improvement in our society?