Wednesday 8 September 2010

Marxism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iD1AO7osvQ

Marx was a 19 century philosopher, socialist and economist whose ideas have a huge impact on 'cultural Theory". The study of "ideology" is largely a Marxist invention. "Everything had already been decided for us and we pay that tiny powerful minority very well to make these choices". This is shown through matrix red pill or the blue. No-one does not believe in fate because he has things running through his mind he has no choice. We all believe in fate because whatever is to happen will happen. There is no choice of what you would like to happen. You dont choice your life, it happen, its suppose to happen. He want to know what is going to happen but it likely to happen.

Marx also believed that the most powerful force in society was the economic self interest of the dominant social class and the struggle with up & coming subordinate classes or groups. the ideology of the society are therefore a legitimation of ruling classes and their position. We see that human change the society to make it better but the human themselves change.

A number of Marxist theorists have develpoed the study of ideology further, such as Althusser, Gramsci, 'The Frankfurt School' other theorists influcenced by these idead include Foucault, Bourdieu, Stuart Hall and the structurslists & the post Mordenists.

Extension

Marxist thinkers claims that the media legitimizes the dominant ideology and a capitalist system, the inequality of life is shown as natural, entertainment is unchallenging of this ideology and therefore encouraged passivity.

Big brother is a reality tv programme, the kinds of programme know as a ' reality TV' forms a very mixed bag. They include what essential game show , big brother.
Reality TV in all its versions, but particularly in its reality game show format, represents, from the producers' and broadcasters' side, an attempt to respond to the changing economics of contemporary television.

The fact that big Brother gains such a large enthusiastic in audience of young people tells us something about life modern capitalism.

2 comments:

  1. Good start.

    Please check through to ensure that you make everything make sense. Also can you develop this a little more and give a more complete analysis of the bill pill/red pill scene from The Matrix.

    Please also check out the main blog for details of this weeks homework expectations

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  2. WWW Developing, but please take extra care to make sure that your writing makes sense.

    ebi You can afford to take a little more time in the micro analysis of the scene, this will then offer you things to discuss with a marxist viewpoint. Most particularly you could focus on Morpheus' dialogue and compare it directly to Marx. Also, you could expand on the idea of false consciousness - is Neo living under the illusion that he know how the world works but doesn't realise that he is in essence a slave? Can the film be read on a Macro level as a metaphor of capitalist society? Everyone works and pays taxes but the power remains with the rich minority who make all the important decisions?

    develop a more sophisticated analysis of Big Brother - a good one to use but so far there is no analysis.

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