Intro
In this episode of “Philosophize This!”, host Stephen West explores the work of Susan Sontag and delves into our complicated relationship with images, pictures, and videos in the modern world. Sontag’s unique perspective and critical analysis shed light on the ways in which we consume and interpret visual media. Join us as we uncover the power and impact of images in our society.
Main Takeaways
The Language of Images
- Susan Sontag had a life-changing moment at 12 when she saw pictures of concentration camps during the Holocaust.
- Sontag’s experience is a classic modern experience that everyone has to have.
- We have a complicated relationship with images as modern people.
- Pictures and videos are deeply normalized pieces of technology that we use every day.
- Susan Sontag is the perfect guide to evaluate the image as a deeply normalized piece of technology.
The Mythology of Everyday Things
- The importance of analyzing modern mythology and metaphors that we attach to everyday things.
- Susan Sontag’s approach to reexamining and interpreting normalized things from a different perspective.
- The social cost of having a lazy relationship with the mythology of everyday things.
The Power and Influence of Images
- The primary method of communication in our modern world is pictures and videos, but how many of us really speak their language?
- Pictures and videos are designed to be a simplification of more complex modes of human experience, losing a lot of information in the process.
- Pictures and videos simplify complex situations for instant consumption.
- Images can be used for good or evil, depending on who’s giving them.
- Images can inform or deceive the population and can be biased.
- Pictures and videos provide a connection to events that can be truly inspirational.
- News images are hand-selected to produce a certain emotional response.
- Photographers have their own agendas and can manipulate reality through their images.
- Images can be used to reveal reality or to put out a false depiction of reality.
- The emotional content of an image is determined by the way it’s presented to people.
- Pictures are a manipulation of reality and can be used to manipulate emotions.
- Susan Sontag believes that taking a photograph objectifies the subject and allows it to be appropriated and used in any way.
- The problem with pictures and videos is that people assume they have more legitimacy than they actually deserve.
- Pictures and videos are often seen as the truth, while paintings and written words are not.
- People should approach images with critical thinking and not assume they are the truth.
- The default orientation towards images should be one where you’re asking follow-up questions and putting them through critical analysis.
- To read images critically, ask who is giving the image, why they are giving it, what they want you to feel, how it is being presented, and what is being obscured.
- We are saturated by images that want us to feel a certain way, and we need to develop critical thinking skills to combat this.
- Our relationship to images should be understood in a social and ethical context, and the frequency of consumption can affect our emotional response.
Desensitization and Emotional Response
- Desensitization to images of violence and suffering can occur when they become routine and normal in our daily lives.
- Western culture has a Hollywood muscle that can transform anything seen on screens into something normal and expected.
- In Western culture, people have emotional distance and view everything through a screen, making it seem less real.
- The luxury of patronizing reality allows people to view tragic events as entertainment, leading to oversaturation and a drowning of emotional response.
- Images and videos can produce opposite responses in people, turning them into image junkies or making them apathetic to the suffering of others.
- Treating images of suffering as equivalent to the suffering itself is participating in a cult of nostalgia.
Our Relationship with Technology and Media
- Modern people equate having an experience with taking a picture of themselves having an experience and collect pictures of their experiences rather than enjoying the moment.
- Technology enables a false sense of familiarity with past events.
- People focus on remembering things instead of doing things.
- Passively consuming pictures and videos enables this behavior.
- Modern museums have origins in curiosity cabinets of the social elite.
- People pay to satisfy their intellectual amusement and leave feeling more cultured.
- Museums should focus on providing alternative perspectives to artifacts rather than just presenting a single narrative.
- Compassion needs to be translated into action, not just remembered.
- Passive consumption of media can lead to numbness and apathy.
- We need to be critical of our relationship with pictures and videos to avoid toxic views of others.
Upcoming Episode Preview
- Next episode will focus on Susan Sontag’s critique of the metaphor and its impact on understanding illness and disease.
- Metaphors can have unintended negative consequences for people with illnesses like cancer.
- Susan Sontag was a cultural critic who questioned the ways we use language to describe things we don’t understand.
- Sontag’s critique of metaphors will be the focus of the next episode.
Conclusion
As we navigate the world of images, it is crucial to approach them with critical thinking and an understanding of their power to shape our perceptions and emotions. Susan Sontag’s work serves as a reminder that pictures and videos are not always a reflection of truth, and we must actively engage with them to avoid falling into complacency or manipulation. By questioning the narratives behind images and considering their social and ethical implications, we can develop a healthier relationship with visual media and cultivate empathy and understanding in our society.
