超越「技術調節」的推測臆想：以Morse Things的事物中心設計為例

Abstract

《Morse Things》作為以「事物中心」（thing-centered）取向的互動設計，發揮從物觀點出發的洞察，不僅實踐「物質推測」（material speculation）的創作精神，亦探究事物與人之間的差距。瓦卡里（Ron Wakkary）等學者認為，互動設計可透過「撤出」（withdraw）於人類的理解和感知來實踐後現象學，卻忽略其繼承現象學以人類價值為基準的認識觀，著重對生活世界進行探索。不同於此內在矛盾，「物導向存有論」（Object-Oriented Ontology），接納梅亞蘇（Quentin Meillassoux）對「相關主義」（correlationism）之批評，提醒我們「撤出」源自於物自身的內在特質。「技術調節」（technological mediation）概念雖有助於「人－技術－世界」關係之探察，卻無法對事物之間不可見的「互物性」（interobjectivity）進行解釋，並呈現更具開創性的推測思維。本研究以《Morse Things》為例，分三方面進行論述：一、探討「事物中心」之設計精神，是否服膺第三派典知識取徑，適合以後現象學進行互動作品分析？二、作品所應用的「撤出」概念，其援引之相關理論脈絡為何？是否呼應其作品本質精神？三、作品如何超越「技術調節」而與「撤出」概念對話，探索不同互動體驗之可能？透過對物本體「撤出」的理解，重新思考「事物中心」與後現象學的關係，以及「物導向」視野如何更加豐富「人本設計」觀點，朝向對事物經驗之探索，進而逐步開展「事物中心」設計之理論研究。

Morse Things, as an interaction design, applied a thing-centered approach to exploring insights from a thing-centered perspective. The work not just practiced the creative notion of material speculation, but also inquired into the gap between things and human. Ron Wakkary et al. argue that interaction designers can ＂do postphenomenology＂ by the withdrawn experience from our human understanding and perception, but they ignore that the theory inherits the epistemological approach based on human value from phenomenology, and focuses on exploring the lifeworld. Different from this inherent contradiction, the theory of Object-Oriented Ontology has accepted Quentin Meillassoux's critique of correlationism, it reminds us that ＂withdrawal＂ originates from the inherent characteristics of the thing-in-itself. Although the concept of technological mediation can be helpful in investigating and analyzing the human-technology-world relations, it cannot indicate the invisible interobjectivity between things, which presents more creative speculative thinking. This paper, discussing Morse Things as a case, covers three main aspects. First, we investigate the thing-centered design approach by asking whether it matches the epistemic stance of the third paradigm, and can be analyzed through postphenomenology. Second, what is the relevant theoretical context in which the ＂withdrawal＂ concept can be applied to the work? Does it echo the essence of the work? Finally, how does the work go beyond the technical mediation theory, make dialogue with the concepts of ＂withdrawal＂, and speculate on the possibility of different interaction experience? Through understanding about ＂withdrawal＂, we rethink the relationship between thing-centered design and postphenomenology, and how the object-oriented vision enriches the human-centered design concepts, towards exploring the experience of things, and gradually developing the theoretical research of thing-centered design.