"The Society of The Spectacle"

                                            "The Society of The Spectacle"

"The Society of the Spectacle" by Guy Debord seems to be taking shots at the consciousness of  society and it's values.  Relationships between people have been replaced or diminished by images,  which deteriorate human experiences between one another.  It is clear that Debord is not a fan of mass marketing, as he views this as one of the major reasons for the substandard connections between people.

The "spectacle" is the superficial images that have taken hold of society.  In Debords view, our society has become enamored with "things," which have replaced substance.  Debord is speaking philosophically of society in contemporary times, which exemplify our existence, or lack there of in its pure essence.  Philosophically, morally, and spiritually, Debord argues that we are almost caricatures of who we were, in place of what we are, which is cattle to consumption.   We are consumers of "things," images, and the ideas of reality, which have been distorted to conglomerates of mass media and mass marketing.  I believe we have witnessed such a phenomenon just this past week with the unveiling of Apple's I-phone 6.  These new phones come out approximately every year and the consumer frenzy is of epidemic proportions.  The feeling is that amongst the followers of this phone, itis one of necessity.

The mass marketing of things in which people feel they have to have a "thing," many times are rooted in a pseudo, fixated mindset that leaves one feeling inadequate without that which has been marketed towards the consumer.  The mass marketing to consumers is such a huge industry that millions of dollars are spent annually on the purchasing habits if consumers. Advertisers use such data to appeal to the emotional needs/wants of the consumers.  Debord's analysis is of this superficial need to satisfy our dependence on how we have been manipulated into believing that the "things" that are wanted are thought to be "things" that we need.


The cattle reference refers to modern societies "need" to have items and our utter mesmerized mental state of self absorption to these items.  Our needs have become paramount to images that inundate our consciousness, which lead us away from human interactions.  The I-phone reference is a key example because modern day phone communication is reflective of a new form of communication-text messaging.  We have learned to communicate with each other without actually speaking to one another.  We can speak into a device, which will translate our words to the person that we are not communicating with.  New laws have come out, which state that drivers are not allowed to text and drive (which has led to several deaths and serious injuries).  This new form of communication is a prime example of the modern day spectacle that Guy Debord speaks of in "The Spectacle of Society."

Mesmerized by modern technology