2 ms·

I think there's something to be said about our modern, ultra-connected existences, the omnipresence of entertainment and its influence on society. Super hero m

by simias 7y ago

I think there's something to be said about our modern, ultra-connected existences, the omnipresence of entertainment and its influence on society. Super hero movies and Funko Pops though? That doesn't seem particularly new to me. The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of "Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, and Enkidu, a wild man created by the gods to stop Gilgamesh from oppressing the people of Uruk". Most of Greek mythology is about Gods behaving very much like modern super heroes. Actually many modern super heroes are molded more or less loosely on those. "Panem et circenses" is not a novel concept. Let's not pretend that the average human being a century ago spent their days reading avant-guarde literature and complex political essays.

Cthulhu_ 7y ago
> Let's not pretend that the average human being a century ago spent their days reading avant-guarde literature and complex political essays. ^ this; I get where it's coming from though, because a hundred years ago was a time of huge scientific advancement (Einstein and co), philosophy, politics, etc; these are the things, and these are the thinkers of that age which are still remembered today. The average joe in the street though, our (great) grandparents, nobody remembers them because they weren't extraordinary, influencers, or whatever - they too enjoyed to indulge in fiction and other such distractions. Einstein and co probably did as well, it's just not something that was mentioned much. I'm sure that in a hundred years, that generation will idolize / idealize ours as well.
jerf 7y ago
"Let's not pretend that the average human being a century ago spent their days reading avant-guarde literature and complex political essays." Most of the reason it appears that way is that 100 years ago, only the most educated had access to the writing and publishing that is now our primary record of the time. I am sympathetic to the idea that our intellectual culture has degraded, and even sometimes argued in favor of that proposition on HN, but I also acknowledge it's really hard to measure in light of the overwhelming democratization of access to such things and the resulting anti-selection effect, or removal of the previous selection effect, or however you like to phrase it. Maybe that's a bad thing, maybe it's a good thing, it's a non-trivial argument either way, but it certainly makes it hard to graph any of the relevant qualities of our society over time.

by simias 7y ago

Cthulhu_ 7y ago

> Let's not pretend that the average human being a century ago spent their days reading avant-guarde literature and complex political essays. ^ this; I get where it's coming from though, because a hundred years ago was a time of huge scientific advancement (Einstein and co), philosophy, politics, etc; these are the things, and these are the thinkers of that age which are still remembered today. The average joe in the street though, our (great) grandparents, nobody remembers them because they weren't extraordinary, influencers, or whatever - they too enjoyed to indulge in fiction and other such distractions. Einstein and co probably did as well, it's just not something that was mentioned much. I'm sure that in a hundred years, that generation will idolize / idealize ours as well.

jerf 7y ago

"Let's not pretend that the average human being a century ago spent their days reading avant-guarde literature and complex political essays." Most of the reason it appears that way is that 100 years ago, only the most educated had access to the writing and publishing that is now our primary record of the time. I am sympathetic to the idea that our intellectual culture has degraded, and even sometimes argued in favor of that proposition on HN, but I also acknowledge it's really hard to measure in light of the overwhelming democratization of access to such things and the resulting anti-selection effect, or removal of the previous selection effect, or however you like to phrase it. Maybe that's a bad thing, maybe it's a good thing, it's a non-trivial argument either way, but it certainly makes it hard to graph any of the relevant qualities of our society over time.