Manufactured Versions of Reality.
The book, Modernity and the Hegemony of Vision, is a collection of essays that explores ethics, power, and knowledge in an effort to understand the hegemony of vision. Given the influence of modernism, attention is given to ocularcentrism and the nature of visual understanding in modern thought. The essays include both affirmative and negative viewpoints regarding the idea that thought is predominantly influenced by what the eye sees. The following is quoted from the current issue of Christianity Today, and I think it suggests the impact of creating “image” and that as Christians, we are not immune to it:
“Reagan, who was divorced, did not attend church, and gave less than 1 percent of his income to charity, hardly delivered on any of evangelicals’ expectations as president, William Morris noted in a CT article after Reagan died. ‘What Reagan did give evangelicals, in great abundance, was sympathetic affirmation in the form of photo ops. For many, that was enough.’” … “Northland Church senior pastor Joel Hunter [said] ‘Pro-lifers of both parties can support Sen. Obama on the basis that more lives will be saved than if they had just taken a moral stance hoping to overturn Roe v Wade.’ The reporters on the press conference call were incredulous and kept pointing out that pro-life Democrats had lost. But Hunter and the others were insistent. They hadn’t lost. The had been included.” Christianity Today, October 2008.
I believe that our American culture is indeed very influenced by what is seen, and that the sound-bite nature of our news media exacerbates the condition. I am professionally a visual communicator and teach graphic design, so I know that visual information can impact viewers. I am concerned that as we “consume” (goods, information, music, etc.) we are using our “eyes” as the primary source of information, attempting to decode signs and signifiers that can be culturally misleading. I know that while my students are very bright, they do not like to read – in the form of books nor online resources.
I happened to listen to the last presidential debate on the radio. While I could ascertain an amount of enmity between the candidates, I was not aware of the many gestures and postures that each candidate displayed. Only after the debate, did I learn of how the images that each candidate portrayed on television influenced peoples’ reactions, not unlike the Kennedy-Nixon debates. Indeed, last week the Los Angeles Times reported “Not since the Kennedy-Nixon race has television played such a significant role in a presidential election. The ‘Saturday Night Live’ skewerings, the David Letterman-John McCain feud, the political meltdowns on ‘The View,’ the Gov. Sarah Palin interviews, Obama’s World Series lead-in (if there’s a Game 6) and, of course, the debates. … If you think this is all silly and unimportant, then you haven’t been paying much attention to American culture. The Obama campaign knows its strengths enough to make the extraordinary purchase of the half-hour leading up to a World Series game. … the McCain campaign hasn’t been very smart about television in general.” (Los Angeles Times, Friday, October 24, 2008. page E1)
My concern is not that we not have access to visual information but that our culture learns to take steps that leads to more reflective opportunities for thoughtful decision-making. And that even, if we continue to value the “hegemony of vision” that people learn to decode the visual information that they are partaking of. As David Dark writes, “… we’ve found ourselves in a cultural climate that appears increasingly unlikely to promote the skills required to think coherently about ourselves or to properly converse with each other. The trouble with a sound-bite culture that resents complexity and lacks the patience to listen to (ore read) any account of people, places, or events that doesn’t somehow prove we’re in the right is that is eventually becomes a sort of playback look playing over in our heads even when we aren’t tuned in to television, radio, or computer screen. … popular media culture in America … views thoughtfulness as a weakness … militant ignorance passes itself off as integrity …” (The Gospel According to America, 29)
October 28, 2008 at 6:32 pm
Very interesting post coming particularly coming from someone who knows the power of the visual. I agree with you in that we need to learn and teach others how to decode the visual. It is very easy to just be swept up on where that visual takes you, but intentional reflection and thoughtfulness needs to be encouraged and taught.
It reminds me of a local election a few years ago. It was the Saturday before the election and friend and I were in my backyard when we saw an airplane skywriting, “Vote for _____.” (I can’t remember who it was for.) My friend piped up, “That’s so cool! I’m going to vote for him!” Which is exactly the reaction the candidate’s campaign was going for. We are too reactionary. I can’t remember how I voted in that election, but next week I hope I go into the voting booth with a better idea of the candidates and issues than, “…and that’s the guy who did the skywriting…”