Looking at Science

Science has largely been considered an objective field, outside of the influence of normal cultural context and influence, but science is no exception to the social contexts that form our understanding of life. We know this, for in the renaissance period science and art were one in the same. Even more, cataloging humans based on physical appearance and anthropometric studies once were considered science, showing the importance of cultural ideology at the time. As science continues to advance, visual imagery has become increasingly important in allowing doctors and scientists to “see the unseen”, particularly inside the body and at the molecular level. From looking at dead bodies in the past, to viewing displays of inside the human body today, scientific images have always fascinated people.

 

One way we can understand the link between art and science today is the way in which “scientific” pictures are made to be aesthetically pleasing. For example, let’s take the Time Magazine cover from 1965 where the reader is told the image is of a living fetus when in reality it was an isolated fetus removed from the mother, with color and special effects added for viewing purposes. Or more recently let us consider PET Scans displaying the elusive brain, and the colors used to clarify the “facts” that are still very tentative. The simplicity and power of these images can be quite moving for the viewers. We can see how this is also the case with the picture above of several sperm competing to fertilize an egg. The sperm here were dyed and the photo as a whole was brightened and enhanced giving a deceptive view of “truth”. However the image is culturally positioned to be most relevant and entertaining for the current time. Sperm could be thought of in thousands of different contexts and this picture shows just one of those many ways; this is a reminder that no one image can be objective, whether in the field of science or not.  

Postmodernism

Postmodernism could be characterized by its lack of characterization; it’s multifaceted, intertextual, and simultaneously intersects with modernism and even pre-modernism (310). While modernism was about trying to obtain deeper truths, postmodernism questions the very notion of truth (312). This has led to a questioning about authenticity and the merit it actually holds. One critique of postmodernist living is the been-there-done-that lifestyle where it seems as everything has already been done before (315). This has led to a popularity of remaking works with a particular spin, irony, and the stepping back to look at a work through a different context. Pastiche is the term that encapsulates most of these ideas, playing on imitation, parody and a usually humorous or ironic use of other media or ideas (328).

 

 

A solid example of this notion of postmodernism comes from the 2013 movie Warm Bodies. The movie is a prime example of intertextuality, and the once simple task of defining its genre is even too complicated to easily do. The movie is a drama, a horror, a romance and a comedy all at the same time. This work of art is an indefinable slew of different messages, very akin to postmodernism. Moreover, it uses pastiche by reproducing the idea of zombie movies. However it doesn’t do this in a traditional sense, but with the twist of humanism. Though the idea of zombie have been recycled thousands of times, the use of humanistic traits within a zombie makes this as much an “original” piece of work as any. Another dimension of postmodernism is the confusion of time and space, and even this is somewhat achieved as we are in some point in an unknowable future in the movie. Warm Bodies is as crowded, plural, indefinable, and ironic as postmodernism itself.

Media Overload

While in previous years being alone meant you weren’t communicating with anybody else, in today’s technological world you can be all alone in your room yet virtually connected to the entire world. From phones to computers to television, these are all media that have helped to create a new public sphere, one based far less on space, and more on time, access to free flowing information, and global interconnectivity (Arjun Appadurai)(248). Marshall McLuhan said in the 1960’s that a medium is any extension through ourselves in a technological form (229). This idea of media extensions is tied in with the creation of mass audience. Monolithic mass culture refers to a period in the early 20^th century where early television and newspapers dominated news, but this gave way to the concept of mass media which is the term used to describe those many media forms used to reach mass audiences with shared interests (226). As a part of the contest between different media and corporations, we’ve seen a battle of spectacles, or basically, shock and awe news (240).This kind of sensationalist approach can have its cons.

 

 

A problem with the approach of today’s quick and ever-changing bombardment of images is the “media overload” it has created (227). Jean Baudrillard coined the term cyberblitz to describe the escalation of random and unpredictable media forms, images, and information that have smothered post modern society (227). My image taken of a young boy this year, shows him gazing into an onslaught of televisions and different media options and speaks to the cyberblitz we currently face and its possible consequences, especially on developing young minds. Because of convergence, defined by many media coming together into one, this media overload is even more accessible and refined, and this raises expectations of instant gratification even higher (look no further than the iPhone for convergence example)(232). Moreover, because these media are so widespread, convenient and encaptivating, almost everybody works within them and media critics such as Herbert Schiller are quick to point out how such power could be used by private organizations to take over private space (236). Because media is now very capable of dictating ideology, and hence culture in large, scholars such as Robert McChensey argue nearly all media can be seen as propaganda- covertly promoting specific ideals in a manner unbeknownst to the masses (237).

Internet Memes

In today’s digital age, our society is saturated with reproductions and copies of all kinds of images, and this has created thought processes that the one-of-a-kind image doesn’t necessarily hold as much merit anymore. Copyright literally means “right to copy”, but this includes the rights to only the “expression of the idea”, and not the idea itself (204, 205). Authenticity has traditionally meant genuine, or not copied or false, and this is attributed to a single person or object; however this word can also mean “classic” or “timeless” and because of this shift over time the word is now able to be attached and sold to copies of certain looks or designs. (196). Still, no matter how “authentic” a reproduction is, the meaning of a copy never stays exactly the same. Benjamin noted that the meaning of the original work of art changes when it is reproduced because its value comes not from the uniqueness of the image as one-of-a-kind but rather from its status as being the original of many copies (197). It’s important to understand that reproduction also includes the copy of one’s likeness, meaning it doesn’t have to be an exact replica to infringe on copyright (206).  Though as Benjamin says, the value of any given image isn’t created in its uniqueness, but instead in its aesthetic, cultural and social worth (199). Trademarks are used as a way of protecting certain images, but like many laws can have their loopholes (211). These days, one image can be seen in a million different places at once. This can be a very powerful tool for political activism, and many who believe in social movements oppose the idea images should be copyrighted and owned by an individual (202). This, among many issues, also makes the legal world of reproduction a very messy one.

This relates directly to internet memes, for they deliberately take a popular image and reproduce it with a simple sentence to make it humorous. These images are produced in such high volume and so easily by so many, it’s impossible to track down and prevent their use, and this appears to be a growing problem. Like mentioned by Benjamin earlier, these images take on a whole new culturally meaning when they’re reproduced under “meme context”.

 

The Dos Equis man was (through their ad campaign) described as “the most interesting man in the world” and pitched the tag line, “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, it’s Dos Equis.” His popularity gave him a place in the world of memes, utilizing the set up of “I don’t always X but when I do, Y”. Just his image, suit and beard equipped, is a signifier for that sentence structure which is almost always signified. The meme with “I don’t often drink beer…” is a signifier of the exact commercials which are signified, though it is then made a joke by explaining why his opinion shouldn’t then be relevant. The moment of pause between lines is a specific maneuver used to build comedic dramatic effect and is popular with memes. This pause and structure alone is a signifier that we’re actually reading a meme, the signified.

Symbolic Self-Portrait

         The term realism refers to a set of conventions or representation that is understood at a given time to represent and interpret accurate meanings about people, objects or events. (146) In a way, I am trying to use realism about myself through a representation of symbols and signs. But because I am using signs and symbols, this second picture of me I’ve created is really more abstract. However the line between abstract and realism is nearly impossible to draw for they both use conventions of realism to some extent. Reproduction is a difficult task for the context of history always changes what can be understood from the visual representations. Over time and in different context the photos can mean something different for over time we develop different ways of seeing, knowing, and different views about value and meaning. (145) The link between the signifier and signified is the link between the image and its meaning- we must remember this link is arbitrary and contextually specific; (141) Similarly, an episteme is a term coined by Foucault meaning how truth is organized in any given era. (149) We must use the episteme of our era in order to understand all the symbols represented in my pictures. We could assume in this era wearing multi-colored sun glasses is “cool.” Though it could also symbolize sun in my eyes. Perspective is another term that’s important here, meaning the set of systems used to produce representations through a certain frame. (151) Here the audience is forced to take the perspective from the other side of the computer screen since this is on my blog. We can see as for me symbolically, there are a number of things that represent me. Headphones and an iPod are the signifier and they signify my love for music, which would be the signified. Additionally we can assume my lover for coffee, the Redsox, cheap beer, and fruit. Insulin is a sign for my diabetes while an Orchard Trails pamphlet symbolizes my residence.  

Interpellating the Subject

 

Viewing is more than just looking, and the additional element of locating oneself in a field of meaning-making is known as interpellation. I would describe Interpellation as the act of being pulled in and gripped by a powerful image, and the relationship that follows. As Sturken and Cartwright agreed upon, “Interpellation is the process of interruption through which an individual viewer comes to recognize himself or herself as among the class or group of subjects for whom the image’s messages seems to be intended.” (103) Following this logic, in my example, we can see how I am a target for the messages of a concert aimed at young adults such as myself. I am interpellated by the idea that many people crowded together in the dark with lights and music, must be a great time. We can also understand how I would be prone to lending my gaze to the image. Gaze is defined by visual theorist as the act of looking emphasizing the embeddedness of the gaze of the individual viewer in a social and contextual field of looks, objects and other sensory information. (94) That means here we must consider why I as a viewer am prone to the messages of this image. This larger idea is always constituted in relationships of power that are enacted through discourse. (100) This was an term created by Forcault that says our understanding of signs is made up within the fields in which we communicate. As we remember the greater context of discourse, we must remember to gaze is to enter into a relational activity of looking. “In modernity, the gaze is constituted through a relationship of subjects defined within and through the discourses of institutions.” (104) “The gaze, whether institutional or individual, thus helps to establish relationships of power.” (111) Hence, thousands of people gazing at one individual clearly places great power in his hands, through the organization of institutions. However, since, this is just an image, others won’t look in the same conditions as at the concert (loud, hot, nighttime, smelly etc.). When others do look at the image, they will all be viewing from a different set of circumstances (possibly cold and wet, or maybe warm and content etc.). The term spectatorship allows us to consider the broader context in which looking is enacted in an interactive, multimodal and relational field. (93) It’s also important to consider the greater context of an image to gain a better understanding of its meaning.

Cultural Appropriation Picture

It appears the image from my last blog post didn't upload properly- sorry about that! Here is my disgruntled look and the image I was referring to.