Monday 31 January 2011

Seminar Notes - Jean Baudrillard and Hyperreality

What we kow Santa as was determined by an ad company at a certain moment in time - becomes the reality.

Plato's allegory of the cave
-prisoners in the cave - shadows on wall is all they know of reality
-more comfortable with a naive ignorance rather than facing the truth
-what people tell us about life are pale imitations of what life can be


Pepsi Challenge
-unconcious brain signals telling if you you have a preference to Pepsi or Coke
-brands have a physical/memorable effect on you
-when you cannot tell the difference between the two brands, when you don't know what they are

Guy Debord - ''Society of the Spectacle'' 1967

Baudrillard
- the systems of objects
-buying into the sign value of a product
-positive/negative symbolic value
-e.g. Ferrari/Larda

Simulacra
-copy of reality
-e.g. The Holy Sacrament - reflection of profound reality
-Sleeping Beauty's castle in Disneyland Park - imitation of Bhoemian architecture - not a functioning castle, just the idea
-approaching reality through a representation of reality - describing a castle as a 'Fairytale Castle' becomes the reality

Reality TV -construction
Documentaries and news - specific persons take on the world - editorial decisions

'The Gulf War did not take place'

Love - are you in love, having feelings or love, or are you just feeling what you think you should, through watching love movies and child programmes

Sex - hyperreal
-need images of fantasy