Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Guy Debord and the Spectacle


“But for the present age, which prefers the sign to the thing signified, the copy to the original, representation to reality, appearance to essence . . . truth is considered profane, and only illusion is sacred. Sacredness is in fact held to be enhanced in proportion as truth decreases and illusion increases, so that the highest degree of illusion comes to be the highest degree of sacredness.”
—Feuerbach, Preface to the second edition of The Essence of Christianity


I believe we have all seen pictures of hippies, heard of communes, and have pieced together ideas of a simpler life spent smoking pot and playing music. Trends of hemp necklaces, ankle bracelets and long skirts never really go out of style. Instead, they stand for something. They represent a care-free easy lifestyle.But, how often do we think of the hardships that hippies face? In the 70's many of those that started communes were forced to leave due to starvation or disease. Many hippies would be kicked out of establishments, and in some instances estranged from their families. What, in this instance, is more appealing: the truth or the illusion?

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