*First see post below about some passages from the end of week 5 we'll want to look at, particularly the Marathe and Steeply passage.
p. 470-475, 489-490, 507-508 Marathe and Steeply
p. 459 Inner world discussion Shtitt
p. 466-468 Gately cake AA analogy, understanding v. doing, success through letting someone else make your decisions (continuation of theme on choice)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I also earmarked Marathe and Steeply's conversation about p-stimulation. I know I've mentioned before that I think their conversations are one of the most enlightening threads in the book, and I'm only convinced of this more and more. One part in particular that drew my attention (especially after my last post about Postman) was Steeply's comment that subjects will press a lever 1,000 times an hour for the stimulation and then emphasizes: "By free choice, of course" (473). I have a hunch that this is directly related to the Entertainment and its effect on people who watch it. Are they incapable of turning it off once it begins, absolutely magnetized? Or do they have a choice? How much free will is involved? Has there ever been a person who has fought against the temptation, or not even felt it at all perhaps? If this p-stimulation analogy is any indication, it would seem that the Entertainment is so pleasurable or somehow engaging that its viewers choose not to look away, not even to relieve themselves. Quite the hyperbole.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Postman and his "What we love will ruin us" argument, I was reminded distinctly of this by the sacrifice of one's "soul and life," as Marathe puts it, for the pleasure derived from p-stimulation. Is there anything fundamentally wrong with blowing off "real life" to enjoy entertainment according to DFW and Postman, or is it only the extreme cases such as devotion to p-stimulation or the Entertainment that they criticize?
As kind of a sidenote, I was also interested in the reference to MK-Ultra. I found a YouTube video on the project in case anyone is unfamiliar with it (not the best video, but a decent introduction).
Emily: I am glad someone else besides me is aware of the MK-Ultra project used by the CIA and other government programs or whatnot in the past or I might be wrong about the usage part.. What you mentioned about the "Entertainment" reminded me of how certain movies can program you to think or act a certain way. I found a really disturbing video on youtube of how Hollywood celebrities are controlled. I find this video somewhat relevant to whats going on with the Entertainment.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4QcW8y5ou8