Nihao, 9/30

 9/30

In today’s class we continued the conversation on Lyotard. As we were discussing the concept of realism, I could not help but thinking of the name “reality shows” and the irony behind it. As we began the discussion with the “before and after” photoshop picture of the female news anchor, my mind wondered to the studio of a cooking show where I spent a lot of time in during my childhood. People would probably not associate a cooking show with photoshop or image control and alteration, but I witnessed professional makeup artist put on and fix makeup on the chefs, who in my opinions do not need to look “attractive” for a cooking show. The female host who supposed to taste and evaluate the food, only chews the food in front of camera and when the director shouts cut, she would spill out the food so she does not “gain weight”. The amount of “fakeness” I witnessed in this show as a kid makes me suspicious of any image I see on media. It also makes me wonder if a mere cooking show has this amount of alteration, narrative and intentional design, how much alterations would there be if it is a reality show where beauty and appearance is the first and foremost thing producers consider.

In a way, media did not “alter” the reality. Rather, media (especially cinematographic media like Lyotard suggests) creates a parallel reality, which has its own narrative, morals and structure. 

I really like Lyotard’s definition of realism that suggests that it “stands somewhere between academicism and kitsch”. It puts realism on a spectrum of “realness” with academicism and kitsch, which helps me understand why some constructed reality seems more “real” than reality. Academicism shows reality in data, science and evidence, which offers no escapism. Kitsch is the exaggerated version of reality that it highlights the constructive nature of reality, which makes itself apparently “not real”. However, realism, lying in between the two, can disguise as reality and have audiences temporarily forget about its constructive nature. That is where any non-fiction novel or “reality” TV shows stand. Although they still construct the reality, they certainly appear “realer” to the eyes of audiences.