The Worth of the "Aura" and the "Culture Industry's" Relationship to Suffering

The bold assumption that Paleolithic peoples engaged in the production of artwork only for its cult value, its role in magic or religion (Benjamin, 1968, 225), does not account for the inherent pleasure in producing artwork, expressing ideas to oneself in a new encoding, or to others. The ‘aura’ of artwork is defined most succinctly as being authentic (Benjamin, 1968, 271) and exclusive (Benjamin, 1968, 271). Neither of those qualities are necessary for the the appreciation of the aesthetics of a work. However, the producers of art and collectors of art do indeed have a stake in preserving the ‘aura.’ Benjamin’s ‘aura’ seems to have little to do with actual aesthetic appreciation, and everything to do with the economics of art. Benjamin even states that “mechanical reproduction emancipates the work of art from its parasitic dependence on ritual” (1968, 224). Such dependence is hardly worth keeping, especially when the trade-off is that, through the internet, billions of “masses” have access to works of art that were previously exclusive. They may not have access to every sensory element of the original work (if an original exists) but it is certainly better than nothing.

Avante-garde is the adversary to to the ‘culture industry,’ in that it expresses truth and suffering (Horkheimer & Adorno, 2002, 101-103). Nevertheless, many people are impatient in the pursuit of truth (Horkheimer & Adorno, 118). The ‘culture industry’ certainly tailors products for many consumers’ desire to be satiated with specious narratives that never challenge the target audiences’ ethical and political views. Horkheimer and Adorno describe amusement as “forgetting suffering, even when it is on display” (2002, 116). The paramount value of amusement despite glaring suffering was perhaps most wittily satirized by George Carlin, during a stage monologue in which, among many other remarks, he expressed that an explosion in Pakistan is “too far away to be any fun!” (1992). Ironically, some “shock sites” such as liveleak.com could be viewed as both sources of grotesque fascination and uncensored news more truthful than any mainstream news sources. Certainly, it is the mainstream news sources that represent the current incarnation of the ‘culture industry.’ For example, the subtle condoning of suffering in heavily politicized war reporting is far more insidious than overt representation of brutality.

References

Benmamin, W. (1968). Illuminations: Edited and with an introduction by Hannah Ardent. New York: Shocken Books.

Carlin, G. (1992). Jammin’ in New York. Youtube. Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egRgweL12Uc

Horkheimer, M. and Adorno, T. W. (2002). Dialectic of enlightenment: Philosophical fragments. Leland Stanford Junior University.