Post-modernism

The ‘good old days’

 life was once predictable

 things were well structured- mapped out for us
 we knew who we were – clear identity
 we had firm beliefs about the nature of things

Jean Baudrillard

 we are constantly surrounded by an ecstasy of communication and that communication is

sickening
 we are now just customers whose desires are created by the media
 we pursue the images attached to the products
 ‘simulacra’ – make believe goods which bear no relationship to the real words
 we live in hyper-realities in which appearances are everything

Key terms

 media saturation- media saturation is the constant bombardment of media whether it be tv,
magazines, radio, ads
 screenagers- teens or twenties who has an aptitude for computers and the Internet
 hyper- reality- inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality
 post-modernism- represents a departure from modernism
 the digital divide – divide between people who have access to good technology and those
that don’t
 high art vs low art – high art was only excessed by upper class people but technology has
changed that.
 simulacra in 4 stages
o Faithful- image is the reflection of basic reality (original)
o Perversion- image marks and perverts a basic reality (evil)
o Pretence- image marks the absence of a basic reality (plays at being an appearance)
o Pure- image bears no relation to reality whatsoever

Key features of post-modernism

 Consumerism is all
 Transformation of self – gender plastic surgery etc
 Uncertainty
 Fragment of social life
 Incessant choice
 Globalisation
 The impact of technology on social life

E.G. Reality TV

 Reality TV illustrates the interchange between the consumer and the

media
 They are ‘real people’ who can be observed and scrutinised
  The do not entertain- rather than exist. They are a mish-mash of CCTV surveillance and
gameshow
 In the real world they are talentless nobody’s who are treated as stars

E.G. Disneyland

 Disneyland is a simulacra. It is a simulated reality

 Artificial – yet ‘real’
 It is a place that exists and is accepted because our imagination makes it
so
 The fine line between reality and fantasy is ‘greyer’
 The power of the symbol over substance

Music Videos

 Music video is post-modernism stage of the evolution of cinema:

o Becomes new by referring to the old
o Invented by coping
o Humours and/or terrifying
o Can be created by anybody
