The Reader on Ma(t)r(i)x

Jonathan Sterne j-stern1 at uiuc.edu
Wed Apr 21 17:24:59 PDT 1999


At 12:06 PM -0400 4/21/99, Carl Remick wrote:
>The art of special effects has advanced at the expense of
>characterization and plot development. Movies have contributed vastly
>to the domination of imagery over the written word and to the
>stupefaction of people in general. That's one reason I'm so
>enthusiastic about the rise of the Web -- the revenge of the literate!
>
>Carl Remick

I'm sorry, I know there's a war on and I've learned a lot just hanging out and reading all the kosovo stuff coming through this list. You all should be commended. But I have to respond to this foolery.

Dear Carl,

3. When in human history has the written word dominated imagery except for the smallest fraction of people (like academics, for instance)? Why should writing dominate images in moving pictures?

2. On what grounds can you argue that the web is more word and less image friendly? Sure, streaming video isn't here yet and all, but all the orthodoxies of web design I know about enphasize lots of images and visual design, and keeping words to a minimum.

1. What's necessary about linear plot and character development in creative art anyway? Frankly, I think this kind of aesthetic bombast is completely elitist, ethnocentric, and incredibly reactionary because it privileges the creative aesthetics of 19th century European elites (joined later by American elites) over all other possible alternatives.

Flame off.

--Jonathan

P.S. Catherine's right. It was years before there was narrative and character development in film.



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