Baudrillard & hyperreality

Baudrillard

Part One: Jean Baudrillard (1929-2007) Baudrillard was a controversial Philosopher whose main ideas and concepts have been used to understand the effect of living in a Postmodern environment on our perceptions of reality.His most important book "Simulacra and Simulations" became the basis of the Matrix films Simulations and Simulacra Hyperreality

Baudrillard cont.• The effect of Postmodernism on the Audience can be extensive and can alter

our perceptions of the media and reality as the media and reality merge.

REALITY

HIGHTEN AND EXAGGERATE(SIMULATE)

SIMULACRA

HYPERREALITY

Simulations and Simulacra

• Media represent reality and in doing so change it to make it more visual and fun.

• However what happens when we start to believe that this "Simulation" is actual reality?

Activity: Chinese Drawings

• You will each get told to draw an object, then you pass it on and that person draws that object, you pass it on again…..

Activity: Chinese Drawings

• How far from the original are the 2, 3, 4 drawings?

We live in a world of simulacra and artificialness!

• The effect of living in Simulacra is……..

a distorted sense of reality or Hyperreality.

Hyperreality

Key Term: Hyperreality

Was first described by the Philosopher Jean Baudrillard were he suggested that the media can now create such idealistic representations of reality that out perform actual reality. The audience is left feeling depressed as they're own life doesn't live up to artificial reality.

Baudrillard and Aspirational TV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59OJ17raqWw

• How can we see the hyperreal world of TV advertising as a simulation of Reality?

• What effects will this have on the public?

Baudrillard and the Media (war)

• Baudrillard wrote an article called "The Gulf War did not take place" which was very controversial.

• In it he suggests that the Media set the agenda on the narrative of war - the war we saw on TV did not match real events. (they don’t show all truths (restricted truths) therefore this limits knowledge/power)

News events = Haiti Earthquake

• How can we use Baudrillard's ideas to understand The Haitian Earthquake?

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZRJtAED8uo newswipe haiti

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62QIIjOmJq0 newswipe season 2 ep 3

• Can you relate this to recent events such as North Korea & Boston bombings? Similarities/differences?

Think of what is NOT on TV• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ongoing_conflicts

• On going conflicts NOT on TV news agenda

Baudrillard and Hyper-sexuality

• Watch the following news links on the recent report into Media representations of gender.

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_8538000/8538207.stm (the whole of society is hyper-sexualized’)

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8538179.stm (children of both genders are over-exposed to sexual imagery’)

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8537757.stm (media blamed for sexualization of young girls’)

The debate = should this happen?

• Using the concept of Hyperreality apply it to the ongoing debates of sexual imagery and children:

– Should the media represent hyper-sexual/hyper-beauty (idealistic) representations?

• Yes? = why? – free speech, democracy, money/profit• No? = why? – sets up false expectations/aspirations that

people cannot reach = they feel inadequate

– How can you apply Baudrillards ideas to virtual worlds like The Sims?

Dove evolution advert

• Hyperreal beautyhttp://www.nextnature.net/2007/03/simulacra-for-dummies/

Simulacra for Dummies• ….it seems appropriate to post (above website) this movie

as an ultimate “Simulacra for Dummies”. This movie is quite known and probably already posted on this blog. But just in case, here it is once more: the “Evolution” movie made by Dove. The construction of reality.

What does this mean?

"Life doesn't imitate Art, it imitates bad TV" (Woody Allen)

Original quote: Does life imitate art or does art imitate life? (Oscar wilde)

Summary

Baudrillard The media presents a simulation of the world

that is artificial and hyperreal

Some audiences read the hyperrealrepresentation as reality - hyper-sexuality

The representation of reality is mediated through the media - war reporting

Dove adverts• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhPeA5LaEiI&safe=active

Article: (if link doesn’t work search – dove and financial times “Dove’s Real Beauty Sketches”• http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/146e19ee-a92e-11e2-a096-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2RSNZ1f3H

Controversy with dove• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKLDEj73gGQ&safe=active

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbVvx2vsF04&safe=active

• Article:• http://www.businessinsider.com/why-people-hate-doves-real-beauty-ad-2013-4

ExtensionDove parody

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpWkZiZaQsA&safe=active

• Article:• http://

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/04/22/dove-real-beauty-sketches-reactions-parody-video-blog-critics_n_3130929.html?utm_hp_ref=uk

Comparison of companiesdove Body shop

2013 – sketch artist idea for advert (to show pretty/ugly……seems positive to reflect that everyone is beautifulBUTEmphasis on beauty – outer beauty/image (let’s face it – they wouldn’t have a model with a deformity would they?)

-no animal testing claim-but they have animal products (crushed bone)

Elnett Advertshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9v6vB-mbjWE&safe=active

H/W

Set: Fri Dec 6

Due: fri dec 13

(hand in before trip)

• Must do dove

• Can choose either elnett or other similar advert of your choice (must have hyperbeauty and/or hypersexuality)