Anna Kornbluh, a Professor of English and author, dives into the concept of 'immediacy' as a defining feature of contemporary culture. She explores how self-disclosure in digital media amplifies alienation while critiquing the anti-representation trend in arts and politics. The discussion touches on how shows like Fleabag reflect societal isolation despite seeming intimacy. Kornbluh also questions the impact of privatization on authentic expression and links cultural immediacy to the capitalist framework, emphasizing the struggles of maintaining authenticity in a data-driven world.
The phenomenon of 'immediacy' represents a cultural shift emphasizing self-disclosure in art, reflecting broader economic mechanisms of data capture.
The decline of third-person narratives in favor of personal storytelling showcases a preference for immediacy, often undermining richer social critiques.
Immediacy's impact on political engagement highlights a withdrawal from traditional politics, leading to anti-political sentiments that challenge collective action.
Deep dives
The Convergence of Self-Expression and Data Capture
The podcast discusses the phenomenon where individuals equate radical self-expression, such as sharing personal truths or taking provocative selfies, with their value in the eyes of data companies. This congruence reflects a culture that prioritizes self-disclosure, often at the expense of deeper artistic expression. It suggests that personal expression has become a tool for data capture, reinforcing the economic mechanisms that extract value from individual experiences. This relationship raises concerns that art's traditional role as a critical lens may be diminished, as it increasingly mirrors the very economic structures it once sought to critique.
Immediacy as a Cultural Phenomenon
Immediacy is defined as the negation of mediation, aiming for a direct connection that seems to cut out complexity or reflective thought. This phenomenon is linked to cultural practices that emphasize speed and instant gratification, disrupting the traditional artistic processes that require deeper engagement. With the proliferation of digital platforms, artworks and narratives often cater to a culture that prefers quick consumption, overshadowing the need for delayed reflection or nuance. Consequently, this shift has implications for how art is perceived and valued in a society that conflates immediacy with authenticity.
Historical Context of Immediacy
The discussion traces the roots of immediacy to the digital revolution and the crisis of stagnating production since the 1970s. This stagnation has led to a cultural shift where more emphasis is placed on consumption and the rapid circulation of ideas, seemingly prioritizing immediacy as a means of engagement. The podcast questions when immediacy became the dominant cultural expression, raising the possibility that it solidified after significant technological advancements transformed how people interact with art and information. The historical context underscores the interplay between economic crises and cultural production, revealing how they shape contemporary experiences.
The Erosion of Narrative Forms
The podcast highlights the decline of third-person narration in literature, pointing towards a significant shift towards first-person perspectives that characterize contemporary works. This trend reflects an inclination towards personal storytelling over collective narratives, often dampening the richness of fiction as a tool for broader social critique. The prevalence of auto-fiction and memoir writing signals an artistic turn where individual experiences take precedence, raising questions about the implications for social representation and understanding. This alteration in narrative form indicates a cultural preference for immediacy at the potential expense of richer, multi-layered storytelling.
Immediacy and Politics
The conversation also explores the implications of immediacy on political engagement and the nature of democratic participation. It posits that the trend towards withdrawing from established political structures leads individuals to embrace forms of anti-politics which may romanticize disengagement or cynicism. This anti-political sentiment often manifests as a disillusionment with formal representation, prompting a preference for immediate, personal expressions of dissent. The podcast emphasizes the challenges posed by immediacy in organizing collective action or fostering solidarity in the face of societal inequities, suggesting that a critical re-engagement with established political processes is necessary.
Anna Kornbluh, professor of English and author of Immediacy, or The Style of Too Late Capitalism talks to Alex about the cultural, political, and economic changes she refers to as 'immediacy'. We discuss:
Is 'immediacy' just a vibe, or is vibe itself non-mediated?
How does anti-representation in film, TV and books relate to anti-representation in politics?
And can we relate culture immediacy to the 'material base'?
How do Fleabag, Uncut Gems, and the turn to memoirs and autofiction exemplify immediacy?
Why does self-disclosure fit so well with the data economy?
In what way is contemporary anti-theory nihilistic and apologetic?
How does the style of immediacy relate to Frederic Jameson's understanding of postmodernism?
Is the desire to put everything private on show a response to alienation?
And is the professionalisation of 'theory' a problem or solution?
