Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Drive without Desire - How About Consumerism
Zizek argues that Arnold Schwarzenaager in the terminator represents drive without desire. He is a machine driven purely by a need to fulfil its task - to terminate. It is beyond reason or control, and cannot be disuaded from its calling. this week's blog question asks for other examples of drive without desire.
It seems there's an abundance of examples in Popular Culture to sift through. Zombies were discussed extensively in class. I considered mercenaries and hit men, like John Cusack in Grosse Point Blank. Then there are Storm Troopers, who like zombies, are missing some essential human qualities. They are weak-minded and physically indistinguishable, if somewhat less menacing than a zombie since they seem pretty easy to take out with a blaster. An army of storm troopers, nonetheless, is a brain-washed, uncaring force, oblivious to the senslessness of its destructive behavior.
While all of these are plausible examples, in the end I've had to conclude that its a point from the Matrix that really takes the cake. Agent Smith's description of a virus as a relentless force of consumption is a great example of drive without desire. A virus feeds off its host until it has completely depleted it, then moves on leaving a wake of death behind it.
Funny thing you may recall - and pertinent to the course's aim of understanding society through popular culture - is that Smith parallels the virus to humans. The general tendancy of the dominant capitalist model is to exploit both people and the environment, in an effort to churn out "goods" at an ever-increasing rate.
Perhaps in the developped world of consumption for consumption sake and prgress in the name of progress, our own society is the best contemporary example of drive without desire that we can offer?
It seems there's an abundance of examples in Popular Culture to sift through. Zombies were discussed extensively in class. I considered mercenaries and hit men, like John Cusack in Grosse Point Blank. Then there are Storm Troopers, who like zombies, are missing some essential human qualities. They are weak-minded and physically indistinguishable, if somewhat less menacing than a zombie since they seem pretty easy to take out with a blaster. An army of storm troopers, nonetheless, is a brain-washed, uncaring force, oblivious to the senslessness of its destructive behavior.
While all of these are plausible examples, in the end I've had to conclude that its a point from the Matrix that really takes the cake. Agent Smith's description of a virus as a relentless force of consumption is a great example of drive without desire. A virus feeds off its host until it has completely depleted it, then moves on leaving a wake of death behind it.
Funny thing you may recall - and pertinent to the course's aim of understanding society through popular culture - is that Smith parallels the virus to humans. The general tendancy of the dominant capitalist model is to exploit both people and the environment, in an effort to churn out "goods" at an ever-increasing rate.
Perhaps in the developped world of consumption for consumption sake and prgress in the name of progress, our own society is the best contemporary example of drive without desire that we can offer?
# posted by sam.butler @ 11:01 PM 
