Techne and Reason

Traditionally, 'Techne' connotes artistic skill, and, hence, entails no obvious involvement with Reason.  But, Spinoza, not necessarily intentionally, reveals that involvement in the course of explaining his concept of Definition.  His specific example in that explanation is Circle, his definition of which is an instruction for the production of a Circle, i. e. how to draw one.  So, the execution of the definition consists in the instantiation of a general formulation, which is a traditional concept of Reason.  Such instantiation is not specific to verbal formulation--it obtains in the case of an artisan attempting, even instinctually, to actualize some idea.  But its involvement in the application of mathematically formulated knowledge, instructions for the use of implements, and of prescriptions for recommended behavior, is an essential factor in human development, especially in the accelerated development of the past several centuries. Now, such Reason coordinates Mind and Body, without subordinating one to the other.  So, Spinoza's doctrine is one of the few in which Technical Reason can be grounded, and recognized for the role that it plays in human development.