HARTAIXX2016-V014600
Summary
TLDRThe video script explores the concept of periodization, dividing history into distinct periods defined by how signs and symbols represent reality. Jean Baudrillard's framework is used to discuss three orders of simulacra: imitation, production, and simulation. The first order sees representations resembling reality, the second order involves mass production and loss of originality, while the third order, simulation, erases the distinction between reality and representation, exemplified by phenomena like reality TV and DNA as code. This progression reflects a shift from a grounded reality to a suspended present with a diminished sense of future.
Takeaways
- 📚 The concept of periodization is essential for understanding history, dividing the past into distinct chunks or periods with unique identities.
- 🔄 Risks of periodization include viewing periods as homogeneous and monolithic, potentially denying the diversity and heterogeneity within them.
- 🎨 Jean Baudrillard's periodization is based on how signs and symbols are used to represent reality, dividing history into three orders of simulacra.
- 🗿 The first order of simulacra, imitation or counterfeit, involves creating representations that mimic reality, such as stucco angels, which are artificial yet resemble real-world entities.
- ⚙️ The second order, production, begins around the Industrial Revolution, characterized by the ability to produce standardized objects and the loss of the original-copy distinction.
- 📸 Examples of the second order include photography and mass-produced commodities, where the focus shifts to monetary value rather than symbolic relevance.
- 🤖 The transition from automatons to robots illustrates the move from analogy to equivalence or replacement, reflecting the shift in human-machine relationships.
- 🌐 The third order, simulation, is characterized by the loss of distinction between representation and reality, as seen in DNA being a code that writes our bodies.
- 📺 Examples of simulation include reality TV and movie bloopers, which blur the lines between actual events and constructed simulations.
- 🔮 In the third order, the past cannot be truly represented, and the future is consumed without the ability to project alternative outcomes, leading to a suspended present.
- 🕰️ The loss of a grounded reality in the third order results in a waning sense of progress and a diminished sense of what is at stake in the future.
Q & A
What is the concept of periodization?
-Periodization is the idea of dividing or partitioning the past into distinct chunks or periods, each with its own identity and characteristics, to help make sense of historical events and changes.
What is the risk associated with periodization?
-The risk with periodization is the tendency to view each period as homogeneous and monolithic, potentially denying the diversity and heterogeneity that existed within that period.
Why is periodization necessary for history?
-Periodization is necessary for history because it provides a framework to understand the differences in historical moments and times, allowing us to make sense of the past rather than seeing it as a random array of individual events.
Who is Jean Baudrillard and what does he contribute to the concept of periodization?
-Jean Baudrillard is a French philosopher who contributes to the concept of periodization by defining periods based on how signs and symbols are used to represent reality, introducing the idea of three orders of simulacra.
What are the three orders of simulacra according to Baudrillard?
-The three orders of simulacra according to Baudrillard are imitation (or counterfeit), production, and simulation, each representing different ways in which signs are used to represent reality.
How does the first order of simulacra (imitation) differ from the second order (production)?
-The first order of simulacra involves representations that refer to a reality and try to look like it, such as stucco angels. The second order involves the production of standardized objects, where the concept of an original is lost, and mass production and reproduction become the norm.
What is an example of the second order of simulacra in architecture?
-An example of the second order of simulacra in architecture is the use of standardized building components, leading to repetition, standardization, and a focus on the monetary worth of the commodity rather than its symbolic relevance.
How does the concept of simulation in the third order of simulacra affect our understanding of reality?
-In the third order of simulacra, the ability to distinguish between representation and reality disappears. This is exemplified by concepts like DNA, which is a code that writes our bodies, suggesting that our understanding of reality is based on a system of representation rather than a deeper, grounded reality.
What is the impact of the third order of simulacra on our perception of history and the future?
-The third order of simulacra affects our perception of history and the future by making the past seem unrecoverable and the future appear as something being consumed without the ability to project alternative futures, leading to a loss of progress and a sense of being stuck in a suspended present.
How does Baudrillard's concept of simulacra relate to modern phenomena like reality TV?
-Baudrillard's concept of simulacra relates to modern phenomena like reality TV in that it questions whether such shows are about real situations or are total constructions, simulations of reality that may not have a basis in actual reality.
What is the significance of the transition from automatons to robots in the context of simulacra?
-The transition from automatons to robots signifies a shift from a clear distinction between human and mechanical (analogy or likeness) to a relationship of equivalence or even replacement, where robots can perform tasks traditionally done by humans, blurring the lines between reality and representation.
Outlines
📚 Periodization and the Concept of Simulacra
The first paragraph introduces the concept of periodization as a method to divide history into distinctive chunks, each with its own identity. It acknowledges the risk of viewing these periods as homogeneous entities, while also emphasizing the necessity of such divisions for the study of history. The lecture will utilize the periodization framework by French philosopher Jean Baudrillard, who categorizes historical periods based on how signs and symbols represent reality. Baudrillard's framework is composed of three orders of simulacra, starting with the first order, which is characterized by imitation or counterfeit, where representations aim to resemble reality, exemplified by stucco sculptures. This period extends from the Renaissance to the Industrial Revolution.
🏭 The Evolution of Simulacra: From Imitation to Simulation
The second paragraph delves into the second and third orders of simulacra as defined by Baudrillard. The second order, termed 'production,' emerges with the Industrial Revolution and is marked by the ability to mass-produce standardized objects, eliminating the concept of an original and a copy. This period sees architecture and commodities standardized, with a shift in value perception towards monetary worth. The distinction between humans and their mechanical counterparts also evolves, with automatons giving way to robots capable of replacing human labor. The paragraph then transitions to the third order, 'simulation,' where the distinction between reality and representation dissolves, as exemplified by DNA being a code that writes our bodies. This order is characterized by a loss of grounded reality, seen in phenomena like reality TV and the inability to project alternative futures, leading to a suspended present and a diminished sense of progress.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Periodization
💡Simulacrum
💡Imitation
💡Industrial Revolution
💡Production
💡Robot
💡Simulation
💡Reality TV
💡Blooper
💡History
💡Heterogeneity
Highlights
Periodization is the division of the past into distinct chunks with their own identity, like the ancient world, medieval times, Renaissance, etc.
There is a risk in periodization of viewing a period as homogeneous and monolithic, denying its diversity and heterogeneity.
Jean Baudrillard's periodization is defined by how signs and symbols are used to represent reality, with three orders of simulacra.
First order of simulacra (imitation) involves making representations that look like reality, like stucco angels, with a slight difference from the real.
Second order of simulacra (production) begins around the Industrial Revolution, with standardized objects and loss of original/copy distinction.
In the second order, mass-produced commodities like Model T Fords and printed newspapers replace the natural order, with value based on monetary worth.
Difference between automatons (analogous to humans) and robots (able to replace humans) illustrates the shift from first to second order simulacra.
Third order of simulacra (simulation) is characterized by the inability to distinguish between representation and reality, as seen in DNA being a code.
In the third order, the loss of grounded reality leads to a suspended present with no way of projecting alternative futures.
Examples of simulation include reality TV, which blurs the line between real situations and total constructions.
Bloopers in movies illustrate the shift from real mistakes to simulated mistakes, even in animations like Shrek.
Baudrillard's periodization helps us understand how our perception of history and future has changed across different orders of simulacra.
The concept of periodization is essential for doing history, as it provides a framework to make sense of the past rather than seeing it as a random array of events.
The transition from first to second order simulacra reflects the shift from artisanal craftsmanship to industrialized mass production.
The third order of simulacra challenges our understanding of reality, as simulation becomes indistinguishable from the real.
Baudrillard's framework offers insights into the changing nature of representation and the implications for our perception of reality and history.
Transcripts
the idea of periodization is useful here
periodization is a very old idea but
it's a fairly new word it's really just
the idea of dividing or partitioning the
past into chunks we're in two separate
moments that each have their own sort of
different identity we're familiar with
the a the period of the ancient world or
medieval medieval times the Renaissance
is a very you know famous in most art
history the Renaissance is a period the
Baroque may be different from the
Renaissance distinct from the
Renaissance modernism itself occurs at a
certain in art history occurs at a
certain moment in time and maybe even
the postmodern is a period now there's
some risk with this idea of
periodization the risk is that you
understand the period as a sort of
homogeneous monolithic moment based you
know that produces like a single style
or that produces a single way of
thinking so there's a there's a risk in
the notion of periodization of denying
that the period has a diversity and a
heterogeneity but without some notion of
period or end of the differences in
historical moments in historical times
you really can't have history itself
that the past would just seem like a
sort of sort of a random array of of
individual events so you need some
notion of a period in order to do
history itself today in this lecture
we're going to use the periodization of
a French philosopher Jean Baudrillard
now Baudrillard periods in terms of
their date in terms of time are actually
fairly standard he has three periods
that we'll talk about the interest rust
here is that he sees these periods as
being defined by how we use signs and
symbols how how we represent the reality
or the historical reality to ourselves
and to each other
bori are characterizes his periods as
what he calls three orders of the
simulacra or we could just think of
three periods where the sign is used in
different ways the first order is what
he calls imitation or counterfeit and
here the idea is that we can make
representations that refer to a reality
and we try to make those representations
look like that reality it's interesting
that he gives the material of stucco as
an example then when you make an angel
or a unicorn or some imitation even as
there's not a real thing like that in
the world we don't actually see angels
in the world the angels still look like
things we would expect to see in the
world they're made of stucco which is of
course an artificial material and the
idea is that even though they look like
things we might find in the world we
know that they're artificial we know
that they're imitations so it's that
slight difference between you know
seeing you know a real person and seeing
a stucco angel it's that slight
difference that actually in a way
paradoxically assures us that reality is
real and that these are imitations so
that's the first order of the sign or
the first order of the simulacrum the
first order of the simulacrum occurs in
time really from the Renaissance up
until the Industrial Revolution the
second order of the simulacrum is what
he calls production and here the the
beginning of the second order is
sometimes around the Industrial
Revolution when when industrialized
manufacturing becomes possible here it's
the ability to produce standardized
objects to reproduce the same thing over
and over that characterizes how we
represent here the whole notion of an
original goes away or the or the
distinction between an original and a
copy they could think of photography
which is a technique or a technology
that's part of the second order of the
Malaka even though you might have a
single authentic negative there's no
difference but in terms of the
photographs from one photograph to the
next there is no original photograph
maybe in some way the negative still
assures you that it's an imprint of the
real itself but there's no there's no
original there are only copies the
mass-produced commodity of course is the
paradigm for the second order of the
simulacra ready-made cigarettes Model T
Fords printed newspapers all of these
are products of production and
reproduction
of course in architecture architects
start to make buildings with
standardized building components you get
a lot of repetition you get a lot of
standardization and sort of calibration
so architecture itself becomes part of
the order the second order of sign with
production and reproduction there's no
longer any nostalgia for a disappearing
natural order all commodities all all
standardized mass-produced goods are the
same so the value the system of value
here becomes a monetary system how much
is the commodity worth rather than how
useful is something or how or how
relevant symbolically
the stucco angel is it becomes only a
matter of the commodities monetary worth
in the second order the difference in
the first order and the second order can
also be seen in the difference between
an automaton and a robot during the
Renaissance the late Renaissance early
baroque people who used automatons to
sort of imitate humans they were often
made by clock makers for example they
could move they could play chess they
might even be able to write or to type
they had jerky movements they would be
the same size as a human but their
movements wouldn't be smooth they would
be jerky so again it was actually the
difference between the automaton and the
human that assured us that in a way that
we were human and we weren't mechanical
compare the automaton to a robot a robot
starts to be able not just to be like a
human not not just to be a metaphor or
and an analog of the human but it
actually is able to begin to replace the
human a robots on an assembly line
replace workers so here the relationship
between the human and the robot is on
the order of equivalence or even
replacement as opposed to analogy or
likeness then Baudrillard says that the
reigning order in our current lives the
third order of the simulacra is what he
calls simulation what happens in
simulation is that the very ability to
distinguish between the representation
and the real goes away one of the best
examples I think we could think of of
the actual loss of a sense of a grounded
reality comes in the model of DNA let's
say that biologically our very
foundation our our reality at a
molecular level has to do with the DNA
and yet bode R reminds us DNA is a kind
of writing DNA is a code so DNA in
effect writes our bodies so so there's
no there's no way of conceptualizing a
reality that's deeper than that
we can only conceptualize a system of
representation that is the basis for our
own bodies this is the third order of
the simulacra when we lose the ability
to distinguish the real from the
simulation we can see the effects of
simulation in a lot of everyday examples
think of reality TV is this television
about a real situation or is it a total
construction the total simulation of a
reality that has no basis in in reality
another example that I like is you know
at the ends of movies in old movies they
used to put bloopers they used to put
out takes and then of course when movies
became animations like Shrek then the
bloopers themselves are animated so the
very mistakes you know the real mistakes
that were taken out or actually
simulations of mistakes simulation even
effects how we understand history in
simulation the past cannot be recovered
we're not able to
represent a true past but at the same
time then the future is just being
consumed with there's no way of
projecting alternative futures we we
sort of have to live in a suspended
present so then our sense of heightened
expectation about the future our sense
of of moving forward having progress
starts to go away there's a waning of
effect there's a loss of the sense of
what is at stake in the future
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