From The Oxford English Dictionary:
resistentialism, n.
. . . .
The theory that inanimate objects are hostile to humans; hostility manifested by inanimate objects.
. . . .
1948 P. Jennings in Spectator 23 Apr. 491/1 Resistentialism is a philosophy of tragic grandeur… Resistentialism derives its name from its central thesis that Things (res) resist (résister) men… Resistentialism is the philosophy of what Things think about us.
. . . .
1996 C. H. Elster There’s Word for It! (2005) 246 Even my daughter..is well aware of the sinister power of resistentialism… Not long ago I heard her crying from another room. I ran to her aid and found her frowning at a chair. ‘That chair bumped me.’
Link to the rest at The Oxford English Dictionary
PG notes that in the average home or office, computers are the major source of resistentialism.
I have long maintained that computers, like small children and animals, sense fear and frustration and react accordingly.
No IT person I’ve suggested this to has thus far disagreed.
The computers I have to maintain have seen me smash one of their numbers into a wadded up ball of metal with loose things rattling within. This seems to have improved the operation of those left … 😉
I ran to her aid and found her frowning at a chair. ‘That chair bumped me.’
Deeply terrifying. I suddenly see tons of stories to go with that. Thanks…
Then there is of course:
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium Theatrical Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52YYjVRg5J4
My brother who has a Ph.D which involves artificial intelligence and the human brain caught me thanking my computer. I expected a laugh or something. Instead, he said, “It can’t hurt. It might help.”
My alma mater built an eight-story addition to the library which were essentially book stacks. I would always thank the elevator when I got off. Friends laughed until they noticed I never had to wait for an elevator.
As my mom, the quintessential Southern Lady, always said, “It never hurts to be polite.” I might add that it never hurts to be polite to even inanimate objects.
My mother called this ‘unsympathetic magic.’