Rethinking Promethean planning: An epistemological enquiry of technoscientific-centrism in planning theories

Abstract

The paper provides a critical exploration of technoscientific-centrism in planning theory through the lens of the Promethean myth. Considering the prevailing trends of hyper-specialisation, resurgent scientism and the associated risks of depoliticisation, there is a need to unpack the overreliance on techno-scientific rationality within planning disciplinary practices. This can be achieved by drawing upon concepts and analytical categories from outside the discipline. Accordingly, the Promethean myth offers a valuable opportunity to reinterpret the history of planning as ‘science of prediction’, that is, a field which has been marked since its origins by a conception of ‘absolute’ space introduced by modern scientific thought. The present paper delineates the paradigm of Promethean Planning, while concomitantly establishing the foundations for a post-Promethean conception of planning.