In our week 2 lectorial Brian Morris talked to us about media itself, and this quote pretty much sums it up, “The media are not so much ‘things’ as places which most of us inhabit, which weave in and out of our lives. Their constant messages and pleasures seem to flow around and through us, and they immerse most of our working lives”. (Morris, 2015)
Brian then went on to talk about texts, “sites where meanings are generated through the manipulation of materials and codes [and] do not simply ‘picture’ or ‘reflect’ a reality where meaning resides.” (Morris, 2015) This means that while media texts do in a way represent our reality, as they are created by an individual, they are therefore influenced by the way that individual percieves the world and thus the text is only a reflection of reality through that individual’s eyes.
Texts also tend omit certain information, as though attempting to persuade opinion or win an argument, as through omitting content in various ways, different effects can be achieved. This idea of omittion brought up another idea, of mediated vs. unmediated communication, as in communication utilising a medium such as books, films, the internet, etc. Unmediated communication, such as face to face interaction has an authenticity and a direct experience associated to it, whereas in modern society where social media communication is predominant, communication is more distant, as in order to communicate we have to go through another conduit to reach the desired person.
Media is everywhere, whether it’s assaulting your senses as you try to read on a Melbourne Central platform, or just sliding past you on your Facebook feed. The trick is noticing the interesting little details that inspire you to create or appeal to your view of the world.
Noticing things is surprisingly difficult. We don’t take in half the things we see as we are “multi-sensate beings, we are inundated with sense impressions all the time.” (Mason, 2002 ) Researching Your Own Practice, The Discipline of Noticing. This makes it increasingly difficult to notice even an instant of a moment and take note of it.
John Cage’s most famous performance emphasises our ability to notice things, as well as how cluttered our lives can get, as in his performance 4’33”, also known as ‘sounds like silence’ he performs nothing, allowing the people in the room to stop and notice the things they normally take for granted, such as breathing or the beating of their heart. He also created an emotional reaction and awareness, as many people panicked at the idea of sitting in a theatre and waiting for something that never happened, allowing people to become more readily aware of their bodies reactions as well.
Do you take the time to notice that the sun is actually shining when you’re having a horrible day? To see the interesting grafitti on the street? To see the birds dance through the shopping centre? Do you notice the life around you, or are you too focused and crowded in your head that you forget that the world is huge and yet small at the same time? These are all questions that are worth thinking about, if you just take time to notice the eccentricities of life.
– Morris, Brian. Lectorial, week 2
– Mason, John. “Researching Your Own Practice. The Discipline of Noticing.” Routledge Falmer, 2002