What We Can Learn about Ourselves from Media
PAGE IN PROGRESS
What you see here is a page of my hypertext book Me, Looking for Meaning. Initially empty, it will slowly be filled with thoughts, notes, and quotes. One day, I will use them to write a coherent entry, similar to these completed pages. See this post to better understand my creative process. Thank you for your interest and patience! :)
What you see here is a page of my hypertext book Me, Looking for Meaning. Initially empty, it will slowly be filled with thoughts, notes, and quotes. One day, I will use them to write a coherent entry, similar to these completed pages. See this post to better understand my creative process. Thank you for your interest and patience! :)
What media teaches us about ourselves
Media (stories we tell) is not the mirror that shows us the world, it is a mirror that shows us ourselves.
From stories we tell we can sometimes learn something about the world, but we also learn a lot about those who are telling stories and about their circumstances.
« Sometimes we feel this but turn away from it because it doesn’t look how we expected it to look. It’s not the shiny, polished life we have been taught to desire: the perfect house, job, car, partner, family, or whatever. But when we are present and really listen for the call of beauty, we discover the life that was meant for us. Our perfectly imperfect life. » Wabi Sabi, page 173
How our lives are different from mediated stories: it’s not funny enough or thrilling enough or romantic enough, it does not face comforting closures, easy explanations and perfect solutions, or neat conversations.
We tell stories to make sense, to find comfort, to give ourselves hope, to gain clarity. But then we forget that the perfectly imperfect chaos of our lives can actually be beautiful if we learn to notice, that it does not have to have nice solutions and concise explanations to be comforting.
Healthy relationships are “boring”
When I watch a film that I enjoy, I feel so excited and happy. But when it’s done, I feel somehow empty trying to get back to my live that us not near or exciting in the same way as the movie is. How to find the balance between enjoying mediated stories and being able to get back to our lives without being disappointed and frustrating, or longing to escape again in the world of stories ?
I use these experiences for building self-awareness and thinking about human nature.
According to one interpretation of media representations, some people are telling stories to other to control them or to keep things resolved way they are. Certainly, sometimes stories are told to confuse and control. But most popular stories exist because they are popular and help their creators make money. And why are they popular? Because they apple to many for the reasons listed above: explanations, order, closure.
Media reveals and feeds into popular (mis)perceptions. For example, all the problems in our world come from actions of mean and stupid.
Media (stories we tell) is not the mirror that shows us the world, it is a mirror that shows us ourselves.
From stories we tell we can sometimes learn something about the world, but we also learn a lot about those who are telling stories and about their circumstances.
« Sometimes we feel this but turn away from it because it doesn’t look how we expected it to look. It’s not the shiny, polished life we have been taught to desire: the perfect house, job, car, partner, family, or whatever. But when we are present and really listen for the call of beauty, we discover the life that was meant for us. Our perfectly imperfect life. » Wabi Sabi, page 173
How our lives are different from mediated stories: it’s not funny enough or thrilling enough or romantic enough, it does not face comforting closures, easy explanations and perfect solutions, or neat conversations.
We tell stories to make sense, to find comfort, to give ourselves hope, to gain clarity. But then we forget that the perfectly imperfect chaos of our lives can actually be beautiful if we learn to notice, that it does not have to have nice solutions and concise explanations to be comforting.
Healthy relationships are “boring”
When I watch a film that I enjoy, I feel so excited and happy. But when it’s done, I feel somehow empty trying to get back to my live that us not near or exciting in the same way as the movie is. How to find the balance between enjoying mediated stories and being able to get back to our lives without being disappointed and frustrating, or longing to escape again in the world of stories ?
I use these experiences for building self-awareness and thinking about human nature.
According to one interpretation of media representations, some people are telling stories to other to control them or to keep things resolved way they are. Certainly, sometimes stories are told to confuse and control. But most popular stories exist because they are popular and help their creators make money. And why are they popular? Because they apple to many for the reasons listed above: explanations, order, closure.
Media reveals and feeds into popular (mis)perceptions. For example, all the problems in our world come from actions of mean and stupid.
