April 4th, 2007

Does Form Really Follow Function?

In his book The Evolution of Useful Things, Henry Petroski challenges the widely-held notion that “form follows function”. Using the example of knives and forks vs. chopsticks, Petroski shows how the development of eating tools was as much the result of cultural and social issues as about the task itself. Investigating how Eastern and Western cultures have evolved completely different designs that do essentially the same task (conveying food to mouth), Petroski asserts that the difference is crucial.

“Putting implements such as the common knife and fork and chopsticks into an evolutionary perspective, tentative as it necessarily must be, gives a new slant to the concept of their design, for they do not spring fully-formed from the mind of some maker but, rather, become shaped and reshaped through the (principally negative) experiences of their users within the social, cultural, and technological contexts in which they are embedded. The formal evolution of artifacts in turn has profound influences on how we use them.

Imagining how the form of things as seemingly simple as eating utensils might have evolved demonstrates the inadequacy of a “form follows function” argument to serve as a guiding principle for understanding how artifacts have come to look the way they do. Reflecting on how the form of the knife and fork has developed, let alone how vastly divergent are the ways in which Eastern and Western cultures have solved the identical design problem of conveying food to mouth, really demolishes any overly deterministic argument, for clearly there is no unique solution to the elementary problem of eating.”

It is interesting to see how the technology of eating has emerged. Petroski points out that because of the way chopsticks work, meat is cut before cooking in Eastern cuisine. In Western cuisine, where you often have access to a sharp knife (if the table knife doesn’t suffice), the meat is cut after it reaches the table. Similarly, the initial knife on the table has a blunt edge and no point…a much different tool than the steak, or chef’s knife which in finer restaurants is brought out when you order a meat dish. Eastern chefs, however, still have that pointed sharp knife…but it never leaves the kitchen. In addition, in many parts of Asia (such as India) many people don’t use utensils at all.

Petroski says that most designs are culture specific, meaning that they are not direct results of solving a particular task, but result from more complicated cultural issues. He says: “the evolution of artifacts in turn has profound influence on manners and social discourse”. So not only do designs result from social influences, but they influence socially as well.

References:

Form follows function (some history of the term)
The Evolution of Useful Things (at Amazon.com)

Grab the RSS Feed

Comments ( 16 Responses so far )

Pingback: Form Follows Function In Photography « Concerning Photography

1. pauric on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

There are any number of solutions to a given problem. There can be an almost religious use of patterns in design.. while this can reduce design errors and familiarity reduces congitive load for users, some try to squeeze designs in to ill-fitting patterns.

If form really followed function life on this planet would not be so diverse.

I’ve put the book on order, thanks Josh, do you have a reading list?

2. Eddie on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

pauric-

Small Things Considered: Why There Is No Perfect Design is another great Petroski read that also deals with form/function in design.

3. Eddie on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

I will say though- the amazon comments are pretty dead on…*I* found it interesting to read about the advantages and evolution of things like paper cups and paper bags and the like, but it does go on a great lengths at times- YMMV

4. pauric on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

thanks! the to-read pile grows again

5. Sean on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

What happened to the old template? Wordpress is great, but everyone uses it.

6. Josh on April 5th, 2007 (Comment) #

Sean…not sure what happened. I activated a plugin and the site went to hell…had to re-apply this theme in Wordpress…wacky.

7. web tasarım on April 6th, 2007 (Comment) #

web tasarım

8. nemrut on April 6th, 2007 (Comment) #

I havent read the book but from your excerpt example it seems that the author is missing the point. In the case of eastern/western methods of eating and the cultural influences around this activity, the form of knives vs chop sticks did not arise out of function of preparation and serving methods but in a more deep rooted cultural difference of individual vs community eating habits.

The key to understanding this is that in the west, the act of eating was all about maintaining control and ownership of one’s allocated portion of the meal. Whereas in the east, eating was all about openly sharing among others where everyone as the table had equal access to any and all food available.

With this in mind, it’s easy to see how the knife and fork manfested itselfin the west where eating focused more on individual ownership and control, while chop sticks in the east facilitated picking and choosing from various food items in a communal setting.

9. Wayne Metcalf on April 8th, 2007 (Comment) #

aLpHaBeT Design Offers ASP PHP SQL MySQL CMS Content Mangement Systems Web Site Deign in Sligo, Ireland. We also offer SEO Search Engine Optimization, SEM Search Engine Marketing, Web Site Hosting, Domain Hosting, Graphic Design, Online Technical Support, Support Forums, Free Banner Exchange, Free Ad Rotation, Free Link Exchange, Online Advertising & Much Much More. http://www.alphabetdesign.onthecosta.com

10. Josh on April 8th, 2007 (Comment) #

nemrut…I think you’re agreeing completely with Petroski’s point…it’s about social interaction as much as specific function.

11. Johan on April 9th, 2007 (Comment) #

Design influences culture, and culture gets absorbed in design.

Take Japan. Japan loves trends of the West, but holds strongly to traditions as well. They eat with chopsticks, but play drums in a punk band. Functionality can be extended in that regard.

12. Quakeulf on April 12th, 2007 (Comment) #

What about the boomerang as a substitute for spears?

13. weaverluke on April 22nd, 2007 (Comment) #

Perhaps the question of whether form follows function or not all depends on how narrowly or broadly one defines the function of a “task”? If the task’s function is to convey food to mouth in a way that satisfies cultural and social mores, then the form of the implement—chopstick, fork etc.—exactly follows function. I vote for the application of Occam’s Razor here!

14. Jeff on May 10th, 2007 (Comment) #

A few months ago I went through a similar thought exercise about the relationship between form and function. I came up with six broad categories where forms inspire new functions: Serendipity, Appropriation, Cultivation, Natural Forces, Legislation and Social Norms.

Form Inspires Function

15. gocompare.com on May 19th, 2008 (Comment) #

A few months ago I went through a similar thought exercise about the relationship between form and function. it really is nice

Does Form Really Follow Function?

Comments ( 16 Responses so far )

Add Your Comment

Preview...

Tweets