Enlightenment
For Adorno and Horkheimer (The
Dialectic of Enlightenment, 1944, p. 1) Enlightenment is the
advance of thought- in the widest sense. The authors defined it as the
radicalization of the mythical fear (Ibid, p. 11). Before Enlightenment humans
were under the power of nature, because they were afraid of the unknown. Through
scientific knowledge, humans are able to understand nature and thus manage to
overcome this fear. It is stated that “Humans believe
themselves as free of fear when there is no longer anything unknown” (Ibid, p. 11). Once humans are
liberated from myths, the can dominate nature and other human beings.
Enlightenment, as I understand it, is the passage from myths to knowledge.
According to the authors
Enlightenments’ first traces can be seen in Homer’s Odyssey (Ibid, p. xvii).
Myth
Adorno and Horkheimer define “myth” as a false clarity (Ibid, xvii). So,
according to them, myth is the knowledge that existed before Enlightenment.
This knowledge is not to be confused with scientific knowledge. “Myth sought to
report, to name, to tell of origins-but therefore also to narrate, record,
explain” (Ibid, p. 5). This involved rituals, which were trying to represent
how things happened through mimesis (Ibid). In this type of knowledge, truth
and reality were not distinguished (Ibid, p. 7).
As I mentioned above, before Enlightenment humans were dominated by the
fear of the unknown. So, according to my understanding of myths and their
function, myths involve the exercise of power over humans through the fear of
the unknown.
Old and new media
Film, radio and magazines are the old
media discussed in “The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass
Deception”. For the authors film, radio,
magazines form a system (Ibid, p. 94) which provides the norms and makes sure that standardization and mass production is achieved in society
(Ibid, p. 95).
If I interpret the authors right, television is the new medium. Adorno and Horkheimer (Ibid, p. 96) discuss that
television aimed at a synthesis of radio and film, which was delayed since the
interested parties could not reach an agreement (Ibid).
Culture industry and relationship between mass media and mass deception
Adorno and Horkheimer describe culture industry as the industry in which
culture is treated as a commodity. Cultural products that are produced and
diffused by different media, film, magazines, radio, are characterized by
sameness (Ibid, p. 94). As I mentioned above, film, radio and magazines form a
system, which produces cultural products. The system is characterized by mass
production and standardization. Even though it is claimed that the standardized
forms in the production processes come from the consumers’ needs, in the end
they serve one goal: to manipulate humans in a more effective way. To be more
specific, the cultural commodities are consumed by humans without critical
evaluation. The cultural products are the same, so they provide a specific
image on how the individual should behave, look, live etc. Since this image is consumed
without critical evaluation, it becomes accepted by the individual and
incorporated as a standard; and this standard is to be followed. Should the
individual not conform in the circulated image , it will be excluded
from the society. And in the capitalistic society, exclusion is
considered to be death. Thus, humans are turned into marionettes who can easily
be controlled.
So, the term cultural industry is used to describe the marketization of
culture and how culture has become a business that conforms individuals and controls them in a deeper and more effective way.
Regarding the relationship of mass media and mass deception, it is clear
that the mass media are used as an effective tool to deceive the individuals.
What is important in this case is there is no use of force into making the
individuals conform in one idea. The individuals are forcing themselves into
conforming to this idea, while they under the impression that this is what they
want.
Reflections
I find it really interesting that the individuals are under the impression
that this is what they want, that it is their choice. According to the authors “the
question “What do people want?” lies in the fact that it appeals to the very
people as thinking subjects whose subjectivity seeks to annul”. The concept
subjectivity intrigued me, so I started looking more deeply into this. My
research led me to Foucault and his description of how discipline is articulated
and how to regulation is reached into a society (Foucault, 1997), through
self-regulating individuals (du Gay et al., 1986).
Lastly, taking into consideration the time and place when this book was written and
published, it should be noted that the authors discuss how mass media like radio
were used during the Second World War as a propaganda tool.
REFERENCES
Adorno, T. and Horkheimer, M. (2002): The Dialectic of Enlightenment,
Philosophical Fragments. Standford: Standford University Press.
du Gay, P., Salaman, G . and Rees B. (1986), The conduct of management and
the management of conduct: contemporary managerial discourse and the
constitution of the ‘competent’ manager, Journal of Management Studies, 33(3),
pp. 263-282.
Foucault, M. (1997), Society Must Be Defended –Lectures at the Collège de
France, 1975/76, Ewald, F. and Fontana, A. (Eds.), Chapter 11 (pp. 239-264).Penguin
Books.
