Cultural anthropology, animism, and industrial innovation processes: The case of the “Animal language” myth

Innovation and technology make humankind’s confrontation with its ancestral enemies possible: ageing and death through genetic selection, self-improvement and even the creation of entities in its image. The socio-cultural anthropology of consumption and technical anthropology thus make it possible to objectify the importance of integrating know-how and knowledge from the social sciences into current issues concerning innovation. The objectification of a reference system can be facilitated by the mobilization of anthropological myths. The concept of industrial animism is part of a dual posture of modernity and traditional renewal. This chapter presents a case study to compare the different variants of the myth of animal language. Myths, seen as the intangible heritage of humanity, make it possible to embed culture in technology, leading to the development of a new technical culture while strengthening and/or creating new links between technical culture and innovation culture.