Gary-Benjamin

I have to say that after reading Benjamin, I tend to agree with him. I feel that he could have made his point in about five well written pages, but I'm getting the impression that a postmodern theorist does not subscribe to the clear, concise, writing that a non-intellectual like myself would subscribe to. They would rather spin us in circles until we are so dizzy that we can not stand.

I was at the Daytona Cubs game a few weeks ago, and they took two kids from the stands. They had them put their foreheads on a baseball bat and the kids rotated around the bat as fast as they could for thirty seconds without taking their heads off the bat. The two kids had to run about fifty feet and the one that made it the furthest won the race. This is how I feel after reading many of these theorists. They get my head spinning and then send me out into the real world with their ideas spinning me in many different directions at once. My mind sways back and forth while attempting to equalize and restore balance.

Benjamin's discussion regarding the "aura" of original art was very interesting. I have been fascinated by societies tendency to replicate the original. At first, it garnered little respect as a "replica", but the last few years have given the replica's near equal notoriety to the original. Many have begun to accept the clones without regard to the original piece. As Benjamin says "the work of art reproduced becomes the work of art designed for reproducibility" (pg 23).

The lost aura in art is most prevalent with Benjamin's arguments regarding the screen actor vs. the stage actor. The finished product of many of today's movies is far from the original performance by the screen actor. Many "high tech" changes are applied and the finished product has been massaged so many times that the actor may not even recognize the scene. On the other hand, the stage actor is out in front of the audience for everyone to see. Five different nights equals five different performances. We witness the mistakes, the movements, the originality, and every performance has it's own aura.

In my opinion (disclaimer) The one common variable in comparing screen to stage is the intention to send some sort of message. It may be political or social or personal or controversial...but every performance contains a message. The screen production is modified using many different people, while the stage uses the mind of the director....but either way, a message will be sent.