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Group 7
Jun 6, 2008 17:00:20 GMT -5
Post by group7 on Jun 6, 2008 17:00:20 GMT -5
Group 7 is the best.
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Group 7
Jun 7, 2008 14:08:33 GMT -5
Post by group5 on Jun 7, 2008 14:08:33 GMT -5
I respectfully disagree.
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Group 7
Jun 7, 2008 17:10:47 GMT -5
Post by group7 on Jun 7, 2008 17:10:47 GMT -5
Your opinion doesn't matter, group5.
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Group 7
Jun 7, 2008 18:27:21 GMT -5
Post by group6 on Jun 7, 2008 18:27:21 GMT -5
Understandably, we have reached a conundrum to which will only be solved by those who do not understand the riddle in the first place.
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Post by group7 on Jun 8, 2008 9:22:46 GMT -5
Putting aside the fact that most people create "deep and insightful" statements by cobbling together contradictions and paradoxes with the use of Microsoft synonyms, here's a basic outline we can work off of for our paper:
In this story there are no heroes or villains, just people who believe they can buy happiness, and advertisers who support this belief. Consumerism is one of religion's modern replacements, and, like religion, it actively encourages, then exploits, dissatisfaction with everyday reality.
First paragraph: Define transcendentalism, modernism, postmodernity - Movements correlate to periods of capitalism - Center cannot hold, what center? - No meaning in anything: meandering existence
Second Paragraph: Consumerism in White Noise and Social Commentary - Advertisements - Mall: natural setting - Buy to make meaning - Public like vegetables, corporations cater to them - Ignorance is bliss - Muckrakers - Don DeLillo criticizes the superficial and materialistic culture of the United States in the late 20th century. A. DeLillo presents a society that has gone astray in an atmosphere full of madness, rage, confusion, and aspects of modern consumerism. B. Society falls prey to "white noise," a mixture of sensory input. This "white noise" leaves individuals hypnotized and discontent with their current lives. Individuals are led to want more and more, urging them to join American consumerism - Religion for society but doesn't offer consolation or salvation - American Dream: wealth, nightmare of overwhelming proportions and weighing down of materialism (maybe we should try to attain Grace?)
Third Paragraph: Modern Day Consumerism - Consumers are stupid and need warnings: what is common sense when there are no senses you can trust? - Buy to justify- I'm helping the economy, part of the consensus that is what drives and makes America (60% GDP is consumption) - Guilt of having money: donate to charity - Stereotypes in commercials - Sensationalism - Nothing is sacred: all can be perverted to secular manipulation - If you're disgusting and sick, embrace it: embrace who you are, feel good about yourself, indulge in your stupidity, if you're a sex addict go on T.V. and talk about it with a psychologist to a clapping audience, if you're a serial killer write a letter to the media so the public can put it down and feel morally superior - Sex sells - Revolutionary razor blades: a closer shave - Packaging without worth
Enjoy.
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Group 7
Jun 10, 2008 21:52:36 GMT -5
Post by group7 on Jun 10, 2008 21:52:36 GMT -5
Hey guys,
What do you think of this intro?
Show Me the Money: White Noise and Consumerism in Modern-Day Society
Literature is the lenses through which a specific era is viewed- it reflects the social mores, attitudes, and ideals of the time period. From the end of the 19th century to the 20th century, there have been three major literary movements that have been influenced by the events surrounding them, and have also influenced future movements. White Noise by Don DeLillo is the culmination of post-modernism, the last of the three movements, and it explores how the American public has succumbed to total consumerism. DeLillo shows how the American public has become paranoid of their government and even of themselves in the Toxic Airborne Event. The American public has reached a nirvana-like vegetative state in which they are the perfect consumer; they are simply outlets for the advertising, sensationalized news, and manipulative programs that the corporations cater to them. White Noise is as much an example of the perversion of American society as it is a social commentary denouncing the lack of morality and the addiction to the artificial that the American public immerses itself in. White Noise is the prototype of post-modern literature in that it examines how the American public has become engulfed by the artificiality created by corporations and how American society has become chaotic, paranoid, and desensitized.
-AJL
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Group 7
Jun 10, 2008 23:10:05 GMT -5
Post by group7 on Jun 10, 2008 23:10:05 GMT -5
I like it! "lenses" should be "lens" though.. I think.
Here is my edited version (that we don't necessarily have to use):
Literature is the lens through which a specific era is viewed; it reflects the social mores, attitudes, and ideals of the time period. From the end of the 19th century to the 20th century, there have been three major literary movements, transcendentalism, modernism, and post-modernism. These literary movements have been influenced by the events surrounding them, and have also had an influence on future movements. White Noise, by Don DeLillo, is the culmination of post-modernism, the last of the three movements. The novel explores the ways in which the American public has succumbed to the destruction total consumerism. DeLillo also demonstrates how American society has become paranoid of their government, and even of themselves, in the Toxic Airborne Event. The community illustrated in White Noise has reached a nirvana-like vegetative state in which the people are the perfect consumers; they are simply act as outlets for advertising, sensationalized news, and manipulative programs that corporations cater to them. White Noise is as much an example of the perversion of American society as it is a social commentary denouncing the lack of morality and the addiction to the artificial that the American public immerses itself in. The novel is the prototype of post-modern literature in that it examines how American society has become engulfed by the artificiality created by corporations and how Americans have become chaotic, paranoid, and desensitized.
-SW
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Group 7
Jun 11, 2008 14:16:12 GMT -5
Post by group7 on Jun 11, 2008 14:16:12 GMT -5
Show Me the Money: White Noise and Consumerism Within Modern Day Society
Literature is the lens through which a specific era is viewed; it reflects the social mores, attitudes, and ideals of the time period. From the end of the 19th century to the 20th century, there have been three major literary movements, transcendentalism, modernism, and post-modernism. These literary movements have been influenced by the events surrounding them, and have also had an influence on future movements. White Noise, by Don DeLillo, is the culmination of post-modernism, the last of the three movements. The novel explores the ways in which the American public has succumbed to the destruction total consumerism. DeLillo also demonstrates how American society has become paranoid of their government, and even of themselves, in the Toxic Airborne Event. The community illustrated in White Noise has reached a nirvana-like vegetative state in which the people are the perfect consumers; they are simply act as outlets for advertising, sensationalized news, and manipulative programs that corporations cater to them. White Noise is as much an example of the perversion of American society as it is a social commentary denouncing the lack of morality and the addiction to the artificial that the American public immerses itself in. The novel is the prototype of post-modern literature in that it examines how American society has become engulfed by the artificiality created by corporations and how Americans have become chaotic, paranoid, and desensitized.
The first of the three literary movements spanning the end of the 19th century to the 20th century was transcendentalism. Transcendentalism was the first movement which lambasted the tyranny of consensus in American society, and it advocated moving to nature and solitude and simplifying one’s life in order to reach a higher spiritual plane in which one became Man Thinking, rather than simply a thinking man. The next movement, modernism, developed after WWI, and it also criticized American society, but this time for materialism and the emptiness of feeling the American public was feeling after it saw the horrors of WWI and questioned the true meaning of life. Post- modernism developed afterwards, and White Noise is a representative of that movement. Post-modern literature also condemned materialism, but it went deeper into the whole artificiality of American society; it was a period when the government lost much of the public’s trust due to many scandals, and there was a huge paranoia of government conspiracies, as evidenced in the Airborne Toxic Event.
While there is a general distrust of authority, there is also a neediness of people in crises that is evidenced in Jack’s complete adherence to SIMUVAC’s precautions, he “wanted this man on my said. He had access to data. I was prepared to be servile and fawning if it would keep him from dropping casually shattering remarks about my degree of exposure and chances for survival” (134). During disasters and chaos, people look for something to govern them, as most people will go to all expedients to relieve themselves of the tedious nature of thinking. Heinrich is able to capitalize on this neediness, as “people listened attentively to this adolescent boy” (126). Heinrich was able to make his way “out of the turmoil and surge of this dreadful event…finding himself, learning to determine his worth from the reactions of others” (127). During disasters, people feel as if they have no control whatsoever of their lives, since the disaster is simply so much bigger than they are, and thus any imitation of control they can get is a highly prized commodity. Murray and the prostitutes in the car are an excellent example of the grasping for some semblance of control during natural disasters. Murray asks the prostitute to pretend to choke so he can “save” her, which then gives him a sense of control and power during this disaster. Murray claims that “as long as she makes gagging and choking sounds, as long as she sighs deeply when I jolt the pelvis. As long as she collapses helplessly backward into my life-saving embrace,” he will be satisfied (147). There is a need for people to be validated by authority, even such basic commonalities like “boil your water” or “wash behind your ears” (145).
Another person able to capitalize on the disaster is the man handing out religious pamphlets called “Twenty Common Mistakes About the End of the World” which he hands out freely, since during disasters people are willing to look at any explanation or hope of salvation possible: the man calls this “a sudden gathering” that he could “run into the next world” (132). Another example is the family of Jehovah’s Witnesses, who were handing out “tracts to people nearby and seemed to have no trouble finding willing recipients and listeners” (128). This is similar to the modern day in that many religious and political figures exploit disasters to gain support- Pat Robertson is an example of a religious conservative who linked the horrors of Hurricane Katrina to legalized abortion, and another religious conservative, Hal Lindsey, claimed that Katrina was proof that “judgment of America has begun.” By calling out the disaster as a fault of others and that the only way to prevent such disasters is to join their religion, many people were swayed to join Robertson and Lindsey. An example of political manipulation of disasters is how “the governor was on his way from the capitol in an executive helicopter…allowing the governor to emerge…as a demonstration of his imperishability” (126). Rudolph Giuliani used the terrorist attacks of 9/11 as a platform- he claimed that if people didn’t want those attacks to happen again, they should support him, which also convinced the public to support him. Disasters are tragic, but they are also smokescreens that candidates and prominent figures can use to manipulate the public.
Disasters are also manipulated by corporations and media to sell stories and products. White Noise explores how events are sensationalized by the media- the toxic airborne event starts out as “a feathery plume” to “a black billowing cloud” to finally a “toxic event, chemical cloud.” (109, 111,117). These names grow steadily more extreme and terrorizing, which enables media to sell more stories, since people are attracted to extremes. However, due to this sensationalizing, the American public has become desensitized to all but the most terrorizing and extreme of headlines. A man denouncing the lack of media coverage on the airborne toxic event notes this, asking, “Does this kind of thing happen so often that nobody cares anymore?...Are they so bored by spills and contaminations and wastes? Do they think this is just television?...Isn’t fear news?” (155) This is also evidenced in the modern day news, as most of the “breaking news” on networks scream of lurid scandals, celebrities, and massive disasters that seem to have a minimum of at least a hundred dead. Another example of media placing is when Alfonse says “Only a catastrophe gets our attention. We want them, we need them, we depend on them. As long as they happen somewhere else” (66). The reason why supermarket tabloids sell is because they offer tales of extreme corruption and disasters that excite people, and let them escape from their mundane, quotidian lives.
Consumerism in White Noise is seen during Jack’s massive shopping spree, in which he “shopped with reckless abandon…I shopped for its own sake, looking and touching, inspecting merchandise I had no intention of buying, then buying it” (83). Shopping in America has become a pastime in itself, a sort of guilty pleasure that gives people a high when they do so, yet later reinforces the emptiness of its materialism, like the crash after the high, in which they “drove home in silence” (84). Corporations cater everything to the public, so much so that the artifice of everything becomes the reality for the average American consumer. The natural setting of a mall becomes the natural setting for the consumer, and the psychological effect of mind over matter is taken to extremes. Jack asks “if enough people want it to happen, will it happen?” (132) Packaging is another extremely important aspect of consumerism. Items that people don’t really need become absolute necessities due to packaging- Murray demonstrates the effectiveness of packaging in the supermarket when he says, “Flavorless packaging. It appeals to me. I feel like I’m not only saving money but contributing to some kind of spiritual consensus…Most of all I like the packages themselves” (19). Examples of modern day packaging include the famous “Chia Pet”, in which one can grow bushes on cute shapes, so that it grows resembling something like a puppy or a mushroom. A Chia Pet is simply seeds and dirt, but the fact that it’s packaged onto a cute shape makes people want to buy it. Perfume is another example- the beautiful glass shapes the perfumes come in convince people to buy it even more so than the scents themselves; in fact, most of the scents are very similar to each other, but the perfume that has the most distinct bottle will often have the most expensive price. Consumerism has reached that level that nothing is sacred- everything that can be used to sell products will be used to sell products. The image of Jesus is used to sell t-shirts, and patriotism is used to sell American cars. The American public in turn has developed into the perfect consumer- the American public has achieved a sort of nirvana-like vegetative state, in which it is the channel through which corporations feed gaudy and sensationalized artifices.
The evolution of America has been the co-evolution of consumer and corporation- it is the equivalent of giving drugs to a person. At first, they become addicted, but then they need steadily increasing amounts in order to keep the high. The hallucination and high of the drug has led to an alternate reality for the American public- the American public lives voraciously through television. Nothing is sacred anymore, and all is manipulated and used to feed the American public. America has become a land of artifice, consumerism, and chaos, and White Noise provides an example of such as well as social commentary denouncing what America has degraded into.
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