Automatenmenschen
(Automata)
According to E.T.A. Hoffmann, the relationship of humans with inanimate figures mimicking the intellect and movements of humans should be seen as something oppressive, sinister. The law graduate, poet, artist, composer and theatre director E. T. A. Hoffmann frequently devoted himself to the theme of artificial intelligence, the boundaries of reality, and character development in the face of social mores. He often made use of the automaton theme, for example in The Sandman or The Automaton, an idea that addressed some of the pressing issues of the times he lived in, the era of the romanticists. He questioned the sense and senselessness of human life: Are people still necessary if machines can perform their functions? Are machines even the better people, as La Mettrie argues in his treatise Man a Machine? E. T. A. Hoffmann challenges us to question the human relationship with nature, with ourselves, with our fellow humans and above all with machines. A caution which, in view of the current technical developments from the automation of entire production processes to the growing influence of artificial intelligence on our everyday lives, has lost none of its relevance. This event also commemorates the death of the author 200 years ago.
