Chapter Six: 
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Modern academics operates within a hyper-capitalistic architecture. Therefore we can not trust it. Pile migration and the destruction of capitalism (daily systems) are certainly counter-topical to typical textbook matters. The uselessness of classic education is highlighted with it's limited acknowledgment and discussion of the cultural manufacturer that is Entertainment. Caps Lock to indicate the importance, for just think of academics in relation to the rise of mass media; TV becomes the new politics, movies now history, magazines replacing literature, music the next science? (The boldness of such ideas is merely meant to demonstrate the acceleration of change that education continues to struggle with.) It may sound a bit degrading for the educated to admit, but entertainment is us. Mirror and forecaster. Self-fulling prophecy. If in an academic setting the discussion of pop entertainment is regarded as merely cute; here it is realistically beautiful.
Despite the numerous pile representations in movies and books (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Mr. Holland's Opus, What About Bob?) we have chosen a relatively unexamined medium for illustration; the video game. And why not? According to an awkward 'gaming' co-worker of mine the video game industry supposedly grosses a higher revenue than Hollywood itself. If so, perhaps the success lies in the level of involvement video games require. Common media, be it CD, DVD, sci-fi novel, or Budweiser commercial, treats the public as mere consumers (in a non-capitalists sense for once). The content may incite an |
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