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.
My mother called this ‘unsympathetic magic.’
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.
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
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 … 😉