Lippman's discussion of stereotypes repeatedly reminded me of the literary critical approach of semiotics. Semiotics maintains that one can never know the signified (the actual thing) but only the signs (representations) for it. The classic example is apple. The word "apple" is a sign that brings to mind the taste, smell, color, of apples perhaps along with personal anecdotes of making apple sauce as a child, or stealing crab apples from the neighbor's yard, or bobbing for apples. All of these things are signs for the actual thing. They are what is associated the apple, they represent the apple, but they are not in fact the apple. This theory is a little dense, but the following quote from Lippman seemed to me as though it could just as easily have been talking about semiotic theory. "Thus there can be little doubt that the moving picture is steadily building up imagery which is then evoked by the words people read in their newspapers." (Walter Lippman p. 50).
I wanted to make this connection because the reason for cluster courses (or at least the most basic reasons that I have heard) is that students were not making the connections between their classes. I feel as though I usually do make connections among my classes, and a lot of times a concept from, say English class, will help me understand another theory in Communications, Sociology, etcetera.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
A Comfortable Expectation
"Our stereotyped world is not necessarily the world we should like it to be. It is simply the kind of world we expect it to be." (Walter Lippman p. 57)
I love this passage from Lippman. It makes sense to me and speaks to the world I live in and percieve. It reminds me of that old idea that going into something with a negative attitude probably lends to having a negative experience. I think this basic idea is there, but something deeper as well. What we have seen, experienced, or been told dictate (in part) what we expect from the future. For example if a toddler throws his spoon on the floor and his mom picks it up, he throws it again to see if she will do it again (I am stereotyping right now assuming that it would be the mother feeding this child instead of its father, brother, grandfather, grandmother, social worker etc.). It becomes a game. He knows his mom will go to pick up the spoon. If she keeps the spoon instead of giving it back as before, the toddler may make a fuss. Okay, so that is a bit of a stretch, but things that are unexpected often throw us for loops and we try to rationalize and fit these events into the formula of past experience. We get fussy when things do not fit in that box of expectation; when things do not fit into the pictures in our mind. To me, Lippman's idea of stereotype is the same idea. It is comfortable to fit people and events into a rubric. Like when you are reading and you see the first few letters of a word and assume that you know what that word is and continue reading, sometimes needing to return to that word and realize that instead of "whole" it said "whore" changing the meaning drastically.
I love this passage from Lippman. It makes sense to me and speaks to the world I live in and percieve. It reminds me of that old idea that going into something with a negative attitude probably lends to having a negative experience. I think this basic idea is there, but something deeper as well. What we have seen, experienced, or been told dictate (in part) what we expect from the future. For example if a toddler throws his spoon on the floor and his mom picks it up, he throws it again to see if she will do it again (I am stereotyping right now assuming that it would be the mother feeding this child instead of its father, brother, grandfather, grandmother, social worker etc.). It becomes a game. He knows his mom will go to pick up the spoon. If she keeps the spoon instead of giving it back as before, the toddler may make a fuss. Okay, so that is a bit of a stretch, but things that are unexpected often throw us for loops and we try to rationalize and fit these events into the formula of past experience. We get fussy when things do not fit in that box of expectation; when things do not fit into the pictures in our mind. To me, Lippman's idea of stereotype is the same idea. It is comfortable to fit people and events into a rubric. Like when you are reading and you see the first few letters of a word and assume that you know what that word is and continue reading, sometimes needing to return to that word and realize that instead of "whole" it said "whore" changing the meaning drastically.
Once Upon a Time Warner
AOL instant messenger is a part of Time Warner's internet department and as we read in the chapter is a company that has been revolutionary in the areas of concentration of ownership and synergy. After the AOL and Time Warner merger, (now called just "Time Warner") the company grew in power and breadth of influence. How does this influence me? Well considering AOL instant messenger is a communication form and I usually ignore the obnoxious pop ups and format my settings in such a way that aim today does not assail my screen every time I sign on, I would say that the influence in this particular case may be less than in others. However for the sake of argument if I had the immediate appearance of aim.com set, I would daily be subject to the advertisements of films etc that Time Warner is producing at the time. This is the idea of synergy; that all components of this company work together in promoting itself. It makes sense. It also makes me think of Marx and the means of production. The privileged own the means of production, and whether we are aware or not, sometimes what seems like an outside endorsement of a product or film is really not neutral and objective in the least, but connected to the company in a deeply rooted way.
Monday, January 29, 2007
media and the pictures in my mind
I think that some media influence the pictures in our minds more than others. Television is powerful in creating and perpetuating these pictures because it affects multiple senses at once and can present ideas through visual images that one might not pick up on consciously. I guess most things are subtle in this area, but my thoughts are lingering on television. Sitcoms, for example perpetuate typical/stereotypical roles of gender, race, age etc. through dialogue and situation. I think the more media engaged the more messages one ingests.
I heard somewhere that when a ship landed for the first time, the people on the shore did not see it because it was foreign to them. In other words it was invisible because in the minds of the viewers it did not exist. They were looking at the ocean expecting to see just ocean and this is what they saw. I am not sure where I heard this, what the context was, or if it is at all true, but the point speaks to our class discussion. We see what we expect to see and are often blind to things that are out of the norm. We interpret the world every day and create our own reality. I was thinking the other day about how I react to things. I found out last week that my grandmother in all likelihood has only a few months to live. I cried, I was upset, most would be, but my life has not changed. Later that day (after I was told "the news") I was talking and laughing and having fun. It seems like I should have been more affected for a longer period of time. I guess what I am thinking here is that, like with other things, I create a reality. I am not explaining my thought well, probably because I do not want to expose my soul or anything like that. Have you ever had something terrible happen and then wonder at how unaffected you are? Or wonder at how you could be so "normal" so fast? I think that this "pictures in your head" idea connects to many things. I think that the stereotypes and expectations of the world that each of us have are safe. They are what we perceive as normal. When something shocks us or jumps outside of that box we strive like mad to get back to that picture because it is what we understand. I only understand a world that my grandmother is in, existing and living. It's not real to me that she will not be there/here.
I think this links to the media and our interpretations because we do the same thing there. I think that we absorb from the media things that alter the reality we perceive. I think that it is easier to alter and change your reality unconsciously rather than consciously. I think that analyzing the messages we see and hear everyday can help the process become a little more conscious. I also think that we compartmentalize things that do not fit with our picture (sometimes).
I heard somewhere that when a ship landed for the first time, the people on the shore did not see it because it was foreign to them. In other words it was invisible because in the minds of the viewers it did not exist. They were looking at the ocean expecting to see just ocean and this is what they saw. I am not sure where I heard this, what the context was, or if it is at all true, but the point speaks to our class discussion. We see what we expect to see and are often blind to things that are out of the norm. We interpret the world every day and create our own reality. I was thinking the other day about how I react to things. I found out last week that my grandmother in all likelihood has only a few months to live. I cried, I was upset, most would be, but my life has not changed. Later that day (after I was told "the news") I was talking and laughing and having fun. It seems like I should have been more affected for a longer period of time. I guess what I am thinking here is that, like with other things, I create a reality. I am not explaining my thought well, probably because I do not want to expose my soul or anything like that. Have you ever had something terrible happen and then wonder at how unaffected you are? Or wonder at how you could be so "normal" so fast? I think that this "pictures in your head" idea connects to many things. I think that the stereotypes and expectations of the world that each of us have are safe. They are what we perceive as normal. When something shocks us or jumps outside of that box we strive like mad to get back to that picture because it is what we understand. I only understand a world that my grandmother is in, existing and living. It's not real to me that she will not be there/here.
I think this links to the media and our interpretations because we do the same thing there. I think that we absorb from the media things that alter the reality we perceive. I think that it is easier to alter and change your reality unconsciously rather than consciously. I think that analyzing the messages we see and hear everyday can help the process become a little more conscious. I also think that we compartmentalize things that do not fit with our picture (sometimes).
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Reaction to Lost Medium
My favorite media are probably aim (aol instant messaging), my cell phone, and letters. For this contemplation I will deal with aim. Aim is my favorite medium of communication because it is fast, informal, and so easy to multi-task with. As we have discussed in class, the multi-tasking element speaks to the world today and what communication has become. One of the reasons that I like instant messaging is because I can do my homework, surf the internet, and talk to multiple people all at the same time, sometimes throwing a television show in the mix. I can also use aim as much as I want without the concern of going over my cell phone minutes, and unlike letters it is instant. When I send letters it takes a month maybe more to have a dialogue, sometimes making the information insignificant. That slower pace is refreshing and my friends and I enjoy the novelty of writing letters by hand, but it is still just a novelty and I like it because it is out of the ordinary routine.
As for what I would do if aim was taken away forever? That depends upon whether everyone else had it, and if something better would take its place. If the scenario was something like I alone was blocked from the aim network due to some kind of infraction (or more realistically because I could not afford the internet on because I was paying for food and health insurance instead) I would be devastated. It would be a serious loss. Not only is aim my main means of communication with friends and family around the country, but it is also a convenient tool on campus. Instead of hazarding a phone call or a door knock that could wake someone up, I can just send them an im. It would be as though someone had taken away a friend. Like when you were a kid and your mom or dad or grandma said "you are not to play with that boy anymore." All of a sudden something and someone who was a part of your life has been taken away, even though they are still around. Granted I would still have my friends, but a lack of aim would diminish the contact I have with people that I would not hear from otherwise. I would get over the loss, but for a while it would be greatly missed.
As for what I would do if aim was taken away forever? That depends upon whether everyone else had it, and if something better would take its place. If the scenario was something like I alone was blocked from the aim network due to some kind of infraction (or more realistically because I could not afford the internet on because I was paying for food and health insurance instead) I would be devastated. It would be a serious loss. Not only is aim my main means of communication with friends and family around the country, but it is also a convenient tool on campus. Instead of hazarding a phone call or a door knock that could wake someone up, I can just send them an im. It would be as though someone had taken away a friend. Like when you were a kid and your mom or dad or grandma said "you are not to play with that boy anymore." All of a sudden something and someone who was a part of your life has been taken away, even though they are still around. Granted I would still have my friends, but a lack of aim would diminish the contact I have with people that I would not hear from otherwise. I would get over the loss, but for a while it would be greatly missed.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
A Response to Class
I had a thought today in class that I didn't have completely worked out and so I decided to take advantage of the blog and try to articulate my thoughts here.
My thought spring board was the experience of dealing with my friend after she returned from Europe this summer. My friend and her mother went on a six-seven week long "vacation" this summer. They stayed in hostiles and saw the tourist sights. They visited London, Poland, and Italy in their travels. My friend came back basking in the glow of travel (I have yet to travel out of the country I admit). Something I found a little irritating was that she would generalize about the places she went. For example "Oh no! I will never buy flats. EVERYONE in Europe wears those shoes. I think they are ugly." or the generic "well in (insert European country here) they do things like..." It frustrated me. She visited tourist sights in limited towns in limited time in three different countries and she came back knowing everything about everywhere in Europe. The people are this the people are that. She didn't even spend those six weeks in one place which I think may have given a little more validity to statements because she would have spent more than just a day or two here and their on tours the whole time and would have had a chance to (maybe) experience the place rather than rush through an itinerary.
I could rant about this for pages and pages but I will try to bring it back to class discussion by saying that she has a picture in her mind now. Sure that picture is based on things that she saw and experienced, but she now feels certain that an entire continent is a certain way because three cities were such a way. I am trying to protect my friend by leaving out certain generalizations... I just realized that that makes this commentary tricky. Okay so point number 1. she had a limited, although meaningful, experience of these places and of Europe as a continent and decided that the rest of the place must follow the same rubric if you will.
Point number 2. is that she returned and spouted her thoughts and comments and experience as the "the whole picture of europe" thereby acting as the media in a sense. She relayed her picture to dozens (if not more) of people who did not have any European experience and so created (I speculate) stereotypes and passed on her picture and interpretation
I shall conclude with an admission that maybe this was a rant, and a disclaimer that I really do love my friend.
My thought spring board was the experience of dealing with my friend after she returned from Europe this summer. My friend and her mother went on a six-seven week long "vacation" this summer. They stayed in hostiles and saw the tourist sights. They visited London, Poland, and Italy in their travels. My friend came back basking in the glow of travel (I have yet to travel out of the country I admit). Something I found a little irritating was that she would generalize about the places she went. For example "Oh no! I will never buy flats. EVERYONE in Europe wears those shoes. I think they are ugly." or the generic "well in (insert European country here) they do things like..." It frustrated me. She visited tourist sights in limited towns in limited time in three different countries and she came back knowing everything about everywhere in Europe. The people are this the people are that. She didn't even spend those six weeks in one place which I think may have given a little more validity to statements because she would have spent more than just a day or two here and their on tours the whole time and would have had a chance to (maybe) experience the place rather than rush through an itinerary.
I could rant about this for pages and pages but I will try to bring it back to class discussion by saying that she has a picture in her mind now. Sure that picture is based on things that she saw and experienced, but she now feels certain that an entire continent is a certain way because three cities were such a way. I am trying to protect my friend by leaving out certain generalizations... I just realized that that makes this commentary tricky. Okay so point number 1. she had a limited, although meaningful, experience of these places and of Europe as a continent and decided that the rest of the place must follow the same rubric if you will.
Point number 2. is that she returned and spouted her thoughts and comments and experience as the "the whole picture of europe" thereby acting as the media in a sense. She relayed her picture to dozens (if not more) of people who did not have any European experience and so created (I speculate) stereotypes and passed on her picture and interpretation
I shall conclude with an admission that maybe this was a rant, and a disclaimer that I really do love my friend.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Fifteen Answers
1. I use the telephone (my cell) on a daily or semi-daily basis. I call home and two of my best friends the most.
2. I don't recall listening to a public speaker without being required. Does church count?
3. I IM every day multiple times a day, it is my communication tool of choice. Eilis (yes my roommate) and Lynn. I talk to both of them frequently.
4. Ugh. I use email spurratically. I TRY to check it daily, but usually if i check it once a week I am doing well.
5. I went to my friend's concert in the early days of January, but come to think of it he gave me the tickets. I probably bought a cd a few years ago, but I couldn't tell you what it was with confidence.
6. I watched What Not To Wear yesterday afternoon because it was on and it was a Friday.
7. Thursday. I recorded Grey's Anatomy because there is usually someone who misses it so i record it every week.
8. I watched Running With Scissors last night on campus and before that The Holiday with my friends at home about 2 weeks ago. The last DVD I watched was Animal House.
9. I think I listened to country and mix stations over break because my friend's ipod was low on batteries.
10. Goodbye Lemon. Just because. I love to read and I feel like I never have time to.
11. I did the crossword puzzle, or at least tried to, at the end of December. It was probably in The regional home paper.
12. I bought an issue of Allure magazine (and never read it) in November/December.
13. I love sending letters! I sent a few in November. I write to my friends at home monthly. We are pen pals. I'm pretty enthusiastic about it.
14. Facebook and I checked it about 5 minutes ago... why? Habit I think
15. I have a myspace, facebook, and now a blog but did not have one prior to this assignment. Myspace I use to keep contact with 4 people in particular who don't have facebook, at least that is how it started. Facebook I was encouraged by friends to join and now like it for the picture album option and how easy and informal it makes contacting people.
2. I don't recall listening to a public speaker without being required. Does church count?
3. I IM every day multiple times a day, it is my communication tool of choice. Eilis (yes my roommate) and Lynn. I talk to both of them frequently.
4. Ugh. I use email spurratically. I TRY to check it daily, but usually if i check it once a week I am doing well.
5. I went to my friend's concert in the early days of January, but come to think of it he gave me the tickets. I probably bought a cd a few years ago, but I couldn't tell you what it was with confidence.
6. I watched What Not To Wear yesterday afternoon because it was on and it was a Friday.
7. Thursday. I recorded Grey's Anatomy because there is usually someone who misses it so i record it every week.
8. I watched Running With Scissors last night on campus and before that The Holiday with my friends at home about 2 weeks ago. The last DVD I watched was Animal House.
9. I think I listened to country and mix stations over break because my friend's ipod was low on batteries.
10. Goodbye Lemon. Just because. I love to read and I feel like I never have time to.
11. I did the crossword puzzle, or at least tried to, at the end of December. It was probably in The regional home paper.
12. I bought an issue of Allure magazine (and never read it) in November/December.
13. I love sending letters! I sent a few in November. I write to my friends at home monthly. We are pen pals. I'm pretty enthusiastic about it.
14. Facebook and I checked it about 5 minutes ago... why? Habit I think
15. I have a myspace, facebook, and now a blog but did not have one prior to this assignment. Myspace I use to keep contact with 4 people in particular who don't have facebook, at least that is how it started. Facebook I was encouraged by friends to join and now like it for the picture album option and how easy and informal it makes contacting people.
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