Reflection Theme 2

This weeks reading and learning was about enlightenment, myth and mass production. A strange combination of topics was my first reaction. After reading the chapters and attending the seminar it became clearer of how they were connected.

I have always seen myths as lies before this week. This is not really what they are. They were something that people believed  in and lived their lives according to. They did not feel the need to prove things as we do today. If the world looked flat, it was flat. Suddenly though, people began to question the myths and that is when the enlightenment was born. Reason and scientific methods were required to be sure of anything and became their own masters. Instead of letting god guide you, you could guide yourself thanks to the enlightenment and become a strong individual.

The other part was about the mass production and its consequences. Mass production is something that I have been living my entire life with and I have never thought about what impact it has on society. It is true that we are all under the control of the large companies and that they can steer us where ever they want. But the enlightenment made us into individuals? I think that we think that we are individuals but it is impossible with all the mass media and mass production. During the seminar we spoke a lot about this but we could not really put our finger on what made us individual. What ever I do, at least another ten thousand people will do the same thing only because we are so many people on this planet. I think that being an individual means that you make your own choices. Not based on what anyone else tells you or expects you to do. This however is very difficult with all the mass media around us. Movies, music and TV makes as passive and absorbing is the authors opinion and I agree. Today interactive media forms has appeared that makes the audience think and reflect over the input. But websites does not have any obligations of telling the truth. Anyway I think that internet and other new media formats has given the people a greater chance of being individuals.