Benjamin Vs Adorno

Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer, in “The Culture Industry as Mass Deception,” conclude that mass culture in the United States is identical and unoriginal “under monopoly capitalism” (Adorno, Horkheimer 1242). The Matrix (1999), directed by the Wachowski siblings, is about a group of enlightened outsiders who wage a war against the machines in control of human beings, who are subdued and experiencing a false reality through a simulation called the Matrix. In this paper, I will describe how the film, while seemingly original in its concept of questioning reality and rejecting conformity, ultimately succumbs to the cliches and stylizations of mass culture/media, failing to break from the formula Adorno and Horkheimer criticize.

He explores the links between Dadaism, Surrealism and postmodernism; all in which photography is a medium heavily used. We see influences from famous Dadaist and Surrealist photographers such as Man Ray, Alfred Steiglitz, Marcel Duchamp and Brassai - indeed, some of these photographers overlap into postmodernism; for example, Alfred Steiglitz’s photographs of Marcel Duchamp’s “Fountain” is a prime example of this. Sherrie Levine went on to appropriate Marcel Duchamp’s readymades. Whilst Dadaism was a political movement, and Surrealism a philosophical movement, both centred on deconstruction and re-representation - just like postmodernism. Foster goes through an explanation of modernism in order to be able to define postmodernism, and how postmodernism is a natural evolution: artists must move on from traditional methods of expression in order to continue making challenging works. Photography, in this light, is an important part of postmodernism - being one of the newest means of creative expression, it is in no way old enough to be considered traditional and therefore photography is a perfect medium for

Rock and Roll has revolutionized the way we behave, dress, and much more. To this day rock and roll continues to make its statement in society. It had become a popular music genre that dominated the 1950’s and currently today 's music culture. The music genre originated in the 1950’s. It is a combination of Jazz, Blues, and Gospel. This music style had shaped the future of those in the 1950’s setting a platform of the music to come. Rock and Roll couldn’t have taken flight without the popular artist of the time including the widely known “King of Rock” Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Beatles and many more bands from England and America.

From the above, we can see the essential role played by the capitalist society and its relation to the theory of Marxist aesthetics under the discussion of Marxism. To develop a further understanding in the art history related to Marxism, the materialist art history should also not to be missed out in the context of Marxist aesthetics. From the point of view of Marx and Engels, they believed that the forms of society is the most hostile to art when the society is developed into industrial capitalism in a full way, while the division of material labor and mental labor may have to go through the point of extremeness. (Klingender, 1943) The art history of materialism has focused on the production modes of art, in the other words, the labor of

In The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, examining the shift from painting to an age of rapid reproduction of images and their increasing politicization, Walter Benjamin suggested that “The painter maintains in his work a natural distance from reality, the cameraman penetrates deeply into its web” (Benjamin XI). Benjamin’s idea is a helpful starting point for discussing some of the issues related to distance between artist and subject,, and the reader or viewer and artwork, in the two works.

Throughout the film “Tim’s Vermeer”, the audience begins to question what the meaning of art is, often being altered by each viewer's perspective. There are many things that contribute to the meaning of art, many having to do solely on the audience. Art and the meaning are determined by our society and each person's input, what the audience considers art. For example the way that Vermeer's work was in watercolor, work like paintings, sculptures and drawings are typically considered art. Although, when the added knowledge of how Tim, and possible Vermeer’, painting was made comes up the audience begins to question if it should still be art. Because the audience determines what is and is not art, the viewer

Morals and ethics are both codes of conduct relating to right and wrong. Whilst ethics are dependent on an exterior source of rules, regulations and sometimes law, such as the code of conduct in a public space or a work place, morals can be defined as an individual’s own principles of right and wrong and can go against ethical rules. Morals, therefore, truly define an individual’s take on what is right and wrong, despite what ethical principles they may follow. An individual’s moral outlook may change as they become more aware of the world around them and learn more about issues which require moral attention. As it is produced by and for individuals with their own morals, art’s connection to both the Art World and reality, ties it up in all sorts of moral issues. The question of whether art can effect our moral outlook is asking whether an individual’s perception of right and wrong can be altered by experiencing a work of art. This essay will explore the moral effect of art on audiences, and question where the responsibility for this

In Mark Edmundson’s Article “Can Music Save Your Life?” he discusses his theories on music. He goes through personal experience and later onto philosophical stances. Edmunds believes music, opens figurative doors, should inspire one to create, and above all preserves the listener.

As an artistic medium, music allows the human race to make art out of sociopolitical events. Music gives a voice to the voiceless and is a powerful tool when used to fight inequality, violence, and corruption. Music cannot be given sole credit for stopping a corrupt government or ending inequality, but music gives humanity one thing that is necessary for survival. In music, the human race can find solidarity for a common cause, and against a common

I will discuss Kandinsky's paramount works Concerning The Spiritual in Art as well as On the Question of Form in order secure a legitimate foundation concerning the artist's ideas on sound in which to root my comparison. I propose a reading of Klänge as both a reflection of Kandinsky's philosophy and as a manifestation of a total work of art through an exploration of the relationship between image, sound, text, form and space, that is present throughout the work. I feel that examining the way that Kandisky's philosophies on art were shaped by the social climate and the way in which those ideas were then embodied in a total work allows for the integration of multiple concepts addressed during lecture, while still allowing room for new

Social commentary is the use of a medium by the composer to address a social concern with the aim of promoting change. Social commentary critically examines a variety of issues present in the composer’s world, and also demonstrates the composer’s perspective on these issues. This can be effectively seen in the short films Copy Shop (2001), directed by Virgil Widrich, and L’Homme sans Tête (2003), directed by Juan Solanas.

Benjamin, Walter. The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction. Lexington, KY: Prism Key Press, 2010.

Eliot’s work also declared that the individual elements of the artist should be filtered out of their work, and the artist should only serve as a “medium” for transmitting the words (148). In today’s society, however, identity markers and individualism are at a peak, and the rise of technology no doubt exacerbates our obsession with crediting the individual for their work. In the case of Mar’s, the criticism is not focused on his work, but the man, Bruno Mars, his identity. In the discussion of “cultural appropriation” we place the individual on trial, but that barely addresses the larger issue: the societal privileging of the individual. French Philosopher Michel Foucault asserts in his essay “What is an Author?” that “The coming into being of the notion of the ‘author’ constitutes the privileged moment of individualization in the history of ideas (157). Appropriation of a work then, may perhaps be rooted in a system of property that allows an impossible notion of authorship to exist. This notion is impossible because an idea, any idea, is not original or owned. If the “newness” of music is based on influence from the past, influence that constantly enters our thoughts through the radio, music we hear at social events, etc, how are we to craft anything

Adorno and Horkheimer drew from Marx with regards to capitalism. According to Lorimer and Scannell (1994), “Following Marx, they saw the application of capitalist methods to cultural production as exploitative of the mass of the production” (p. 165). Adorno and Horkheimer believed that mass culture due to capitalism makes it homogenous. The audience then becomes homogenous and unified. Baofu (2009) further explains the culture industry as, “Popular culture is akin to a factory producing standardized cultural goods to manipulate the masses into passivity; the easy pleasures available through consumption of popular culture make people docile and content, no matter how difficult their economic circumstances.” (p. 184).

" This infinite vicious circle of promise, which projects a desire and keeps it in a form of unproductive dependence, constitutes the core of the idea of cultural industry as an