Is it sad that scandal doesn’t shock us anymore? Or is it liberating? Do those who speak or act out against hegemonic definitions of society rejoice in the fact that the ramifications of such actions are not as harsh? Or are they frustrated that their acts do not receive as much attention as perhaps they wish they would because of the institutionalization of and widespread acceptance of their lifestyles, which are then promoted through differing, albeit less mainstream, mediums? Are we content with being merely entertained and pacified at a most basic and bland level?
I find it odd that we enjoy the “blood, torture, death, and horror” (485) to the extent that we do all the while feeling no emotion. We are numbly fearing millenarianism, are aware of the fact that our line segment of life must end at some point, and are content with temporarily putting our minds at ease with “this great new product that will protect you from (insert deadly disease here).” We are at peace with this process and try to avoid at all costs thinking hermeneuticaly about what is actually happening.
These avant-garde images and/or notions have so infiltrated society that they have lost their shock value. Where this one group once stood for social change and enlightenment, now, perhaps due largely to technological advances, has become nothing more than a topic for SNL or Southpark to create some ridiculous skit or parody out of; a process that, as Jenkins described, lends itself to the analysis of the participatory culture. Once that has occurred, it is only a matter of time before the ideals of these subcultures become so mainstream that they no longer shock us.
On a side note, while writing this post I had the news on. I thought I was going to conclude with the third paragraph until I viewed a teaser on Fox News that introduced a new website entitled missbimbo.com which is a site where you create a virtual bimbo. The point of this website is “to become the most famous, beautiful, sought after bimbo across the globe. You can customize your female character and give her plastic surgery, and feed her diet pills to keep her thin. The users of this site are said to be grade school girls, some as young as age nine.” (Fox News)
Shocked? Not really.
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Elizabeth Byrne Post Class 3/25
I found Jameson’s essay hard to read at times, but overall I was able to piece together some thoughts during class today. WouldntULike2Know starts off with a few of the same questions that were going through my head when reading this essay. I thought back to Bill Clinton and up to the on going problems in Brittany Spears’ life. Bill Clinton’s scandal was a while ago and at first it was shocking because he didn’t have a track record of issues, where as scandal’s that involve Brittany Spear’s are on the cover of tabloids everyday. Do Brittany Spears problems stem from the media? Has the media and paparrazi given her attention that she know craves? With Brittany Spears something new happens every day and no one is shocked, but people still buy the magazine and still read the latest problems in Brittany’s life. Then I related back to the quote (I can’t remember who said it) “pleasure derives from pain”. Is because Brittany’s struggle and suffering gives the rest of the world a sense of reality? What is reality? Brittany life can’t be “real” when constantly followed by the public eye.
Going back to how “pleasure derives from pain”- is this the same reason we enjoy “blood, torture, death, and horror”. Not that we enjoy all of those things, but are we not shocked by it because it is always around us? Kids see “blood, torture, death, and horror” starting at a young age whether its on the news or in video games. Today’s society has become so used to seeing the negative side of communities and people shown on T.V. so does this mean people would be shocked if Brittany Spear’s got sober and re-gained full custody of her kids?
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