Poster, Brother From Another Planet (John Sayles, 1984)Please briefly answer these questions based on the readings. Remember to include your name and section number.
In “Embracing the Alien, Erasing Alienation”, Vivian Sobchack argues that beginning in the late 1970s, there is a shift in the representation of the alien “other” in both mainstream and marginal American SF films. Instead of an alien “other” that is radically non-human, the aliens in many postmodern SF films take on a friendlier aspect. According to Sobchack why does this shift occur? What distinction does Sobchack make between mainstream and marginal SF? For Sobchack, what is the difference between “resemblance” and “similitude” and how does she apply these concepts to SF films of the period?
For Mark Dery, what aspects of the African-American experience allow SF to serve as a vehicle for its expression? How does Dery define Afro-futurism? In which cultural practices does Dery locate Afro-futurism (provide two examples)?
The shift occurred because there was a vastly different culture and atmosphere in the late 1970s-early 1980s in terms of both American culture and values. Gone were the paranoias and fears of the post-WWII 50's and the Vietnam era of the 60's and early 70's. These were replaced by a more family-friendly atmosphere with an air of understanding and acceptance. The aliens represented in these films become more "like us", our familiars, alienated images of our alienated selves, "more human than human." In addition, the distinction made between mainstream and marginal SF is that aliens are not so much like us, but are us. "We are aliens." Sobchack's also goes on to say that "postmodern SF does not "embrace the alien" in a celebration of resemblance, but "erases alienation" in a celebration of similitude."
ReplyDeleteFor Dery, the African American experience is represented in SF by the "stranger in a strange land" concept, almost seeing AAs as alien abductees, in which "fields of intolerance frustrate their movements." He defines Afro-futurism as speculative fiction that treats AA themes and concerns in the context of 20th century technoculture. Examples include the "wild style" grafitti of the late 70s and the "beat box" of modern rap and hip hop.
Greg Borkman, section 319
ReplyDeleteThis shift occurs mainly because in the 1970s American culture has changed. The culture is no longer threatened by outside offenders and it is now reflecting the peace and the change that everyone in the 1970s and 1980s wants. The needs of the people are always taken into consideration when making films, if film makers don't take this into consideration films will not do as well. The difference she makes between mainstream and marginal science fiction is the same as her stance on cyborgs and robots during this time...no longer aliens similar to us but they are us. Perhaps she is referencing the difference between the 1970s and the 1960s, there is no longer a feeling of everyone needing to adapt to the same morals and standards of living because now society is embracing the differences between everyone.
The same aspects of the African-American experience allow science fiction to serve as a vehicle for its expression just as science fiction has allowed women to do the same thing. The 1970s were a time of change, science fiction in some ways tries to be ahead of the time but at the same time it shows that in the future we are still battling the same moral dilemmas. In the 1970s, African-Americans are still the outsiders and thus have a great deal in come with aliens, so identifying with them as aliens in science fiction films is easy. Dery defines Afro-futurism as "Speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of 20th century technoculture—and, more generally, African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future." Jimi Hendrix's Electric Ladyland is afrofuturist and so is Lizzie Borden's Born in Flames.
According to Sobchack, “Both the praxis of a new material ‘literalism’ (dominated by spatial logic) and the comfortable familiarity with which the ‘society of the spectacle’ now regards signs of its own alienation have served to transform previously negative perceptions and representations of the ‘alien’ into positive ones.” (292-293) She speaks of mainstream SF positioning the alien to be “just like us” (or even more human than human) while marginal SF shows how we are all alien in some way. For Sobchack, the alien being “just like us,” with humans seemingly being at the top of that hierarchy, would fall under the definition of “resemblance.” “Similitude,” on the other hand, can show difference (not “like us”), but can also speak across sameness and similarities shared. For Sobchack, films like Blade Runner, featuring androids with humans being the base of their design, show resemblance. Films like Brother From Another Planet, on the other hand, show similitude in the way that the alien protagonist is just as lost and alien of the city’s current inhabitants.
ReplyDeleteSince African-Americans are, in a sense, the children of alien abductees as well as having been restrained by invisible barriers of intolerance – to cite a few examples – Dery believes SF should be an excellent vehicle for African-American expression. Dery defines Afro-futurism as “speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of twentieth-century technoculture….” (180) One cultural practice that Dery cites the use of Afro-futurism is the black-written, black-drawn comics from Milestone Media like Hardware and Icon - starring protagonists that make use of cybernetic armor. Another example that Dery speaks about is the artistic sprayings of graffiti artist and B-Boy theoretician Rammellzee whose armor-clad words/letters are presented with the artist himself encased in a homemade, noticeably economical armor.
Joseph Michals --- Film 319
According to Sobchack, the shift occurred because the culture of the 70s and 80s had moved on from the widespread paranoia, fear, and conspiracy of the 40s and 50s which had been brought about by threats of nuclear fallout, government conspiracies, and foreign invasions. Sobchack seems to be saying that the culture of the 70s and 80s was more relaxed or familiar with issues of alienation and because of this the people of that time could sympathize with the alien “other” on a more human. The difference between mainstream and marginalized SF is that mainstream SF takes the alien’s differences and compares it to that of our human culture, often holding the differences above our humanity. Marginalized SF erases all the boundaries between the differences of the alien and the differences of humanity, saying that “aliens are us.” Resemblance deals with the ideas of copies and a hierarchical progression that produces differences between copies. Similitude compares the difference and similarities of things without the aspect of a hierarchy. Sobchack relates this to SF in that resemblance “embraces the alien” and similitude “erases the alienation”
ReplyDeleteFor Dery, the thing that allow SF to be a good medium for African-Americans is mainly because of their troubled past, their own experiences of alienation and “otherness.” They do not have a clear past, so they have to speculate about the future. According to him, Afro-futurism is a genre that combines African-American issues and culture with forward looking aspects of technology and futurism. For example, things like spinning records, early hip-hop and breakdancing are examples of Afro-futurist expressions.
Toby Staffanson, 319
Sobchack argues that Science Fiction aliens of the 50's were still new and shiny with obvious relations to the term "Other." "Most of the new SF films do not represent alien-ness as inherently hostile and Other" Sobchack states (Pg 293). Sobchack offers "Star Wars" as an example of how the alien figure in the media became less hostile. Other examples include "E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Later SF began to convey the messages of aliens through the similarities rather than the differences. Sobchack mentions how most of the recent SF movies refuse to become a celebration of resemblance (a mode by which an original must be seen as superior across the differences shared by both) and instead become a celebration of similitude (encouraging difference and discouraging hierarchy) by how they "erase alienation." Much of SF films consist of technologies and beings from other realms and civilizations entering our modern reality, so the large reason that African-American experiences are best suited for SF is thus: they can connect with the aspect of foreigners in a foreign land. Dery defines "Afro-futurism" as "Speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of twentieth-century technoculture--and, more generally, African American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future." Derby locates the practices of Afro-futurism in John Sayles's "The Brother from Another Planet," and Lizzie Borden's "Born in Flames."
ReplyDeleteThe shift that took place is rooted in the idea that people now engage an emotional response from images than from personal experiences. This allows anyone who feels alienated to relate more closely to a positive representation of the alien or “other”. This positive interpretation of the “other” then replaces the threat of those 1950’s post-war representations. Sobchak argues that conservative mainstream SF presents aliens as “just like us” using human beings as a model for ideal life and behaviors, this, she says, is a relation of similitude. The marginal representation shows us that the similarity between humans and “others” is that we are all so different, the relation of resemblance, that we are alike because of our differences.
ReplyDeleteDrery explains that African Americans have a collective past that draws comparisons to several popular sci-fi themes, a history of abductees brought to a strange land that must struggle against violent oppressive powers to gain their freedom. He describes Afro-futurism as fiction, or imagery that deals with technology and the future but also addresses African American themes and concerns. He shows examples of Afro-futurism in comics like Milestone Media’s Hardware, and even in the work of renowned artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Clarissa Ramos
ReplyDeleteFilm 301
Many contemporary films portray aliens with characteristics so similar to those of human’s that it is difficult to differentiate between humans and aliens. Vivian Sobchack discusses how aliens in postmodern science fiction films have become friendly and appear more like humans in terms of personality rather than as previously depicted as antagonistic, foreign beings. Sobchack explains how "in a culture in which nearly everyone engages images more intensely than personal experience, in which subjectivity and affect are regularly decentered [...] it is hardly surprising that the figure of the ‘alien’ no longer poses the political and social threat it did in the SF of the 1950s" (293). In mainstream science fiction films, the newly defined friendly alien has more characteristics of a human while in marginal science fiction films, the alien appears more foreign and odd. Resemblance declares similarity, while similitude defines difference. In the science fiction films, “Blade Runner” and “Empire Strikes Back” relations of resemblance are evident signifying the belief that aliens are much like humans while “Liquid Sky”, “Brother from Another Planet”, and “Repo Man” provide examples of similitude and how aliens are different, which provides that aliens are unique as humans are, which means that aliens are humans.
Mark Dewey associates African Americans with the science fiction characters of a product of an alien and human through stating that they are "the decedents of alien abductees: they inhabit a scifi nightmare in which unseen but no less impassable force fields of intolerance frustrate their movements" (180). Dewey defines Afro-futurism as "African American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prostheticly enhanced future" (98). Dewey believes that Afro-futurism is evident in African culture such as in Jean-Michael Basquiat’s painting, "Molasses", in lyrics such as Jimi Hendrix’s, "Electric Land Lady", and through African American written comics such as "Milestone Media’s Hardware".
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete--Film 319--
ReplyDeleteLike the 1950’s and 60’s, 70’s and 80’s cinema was a time of great change brought about by many political and cultural shifts of public opinion. With the end of the Cold War, no longer did the threat of nuclear holocaust cause intense public paranoia. The end of the Vietnam War once again allowed people to focus on their own future and individuality. According to Sobchack, because of such changes, mainstream and marginal science-fiction films of the time shifted from government paranoia and conspiracy, fear of technology, or alien invasion, to themes that looked inward to the human psyche and alienation of the individual. Films of the time digress from resemblance by “embracing the alien” and instead focus on “erasing alienation” through similitude by having the “aliens” resemble humans both physically and mentally. Steven Spielberg’s E.T. The Extraterrestrial (1982), in which a stranded E.T. must famously “phone home.” A more visually human example would be Nicolas Roeg’s The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), where a space alien (David Bowie) must come to Earth to save his drought afflicted planet. Sci-Fi of the 1970’s and 1980’s presented identifiable human themes.
Mark Dery feels that Sci-Fi can represent the African-American experience through themes of alienation and confusion, “the stranger in a strange land” (101). “Afro-Futurism,” which Dery defines as “African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future” (102) is found in various media of the time, such as John Sayles’s film The Brother from Another Planet and George Clinton’s album Computer Games. Such work presents Afro-Futurism through technological and alienated themes.
With every new film development, there comes a shift in the way things are done. The shift occurred because people wanted something different, audiences were freaked out my the paranoia that body invasion, and alien films of the 1950’s caused, what happened next was the next logical step. In a sense “In a culture in which nearly everyone engages images more intensely than personal experiences” Science fiction either embraces alien others or not, but contemporize SF tends to view those others as more human then human. There is a huge distinction between mainstream and marginal SF. In mainstream films such as ET and closer encounters, the alien other tends to be absorbed into the culture, and make those alien characters feel more human then what an average human would feel. Marginal films such as The Brother From Another planet diffuses and erases the alien other from their culture and makes them seem different. The difference between resemblance and similitude is that “Resemblance asserts sameness” it also demonstrates difference. Similitude however asserts difference but is reversible.
ReplyDeleteThe African American expense in SF is kind of ironic. “African Americans, in a very real sense, are the descendants of alien abductees” These are people in a very strange land, so Africans Americans who are involved in SF today, might be able to identify with what some of their ancestors when through, and that is the vehicle that is used for expression, previous experiences. Dery defines afrofuturism as an African American signification that uses images of technology and an enhanced future. Two places in which afrofuturism would be in Modern Hip hop and rap today as well as comics such as Milestones Medias Hardware
Jon Elliott
According to V. Sobchack the shift from the 1950s view of the hard-lined difference between the “human” and the alien “other” occurs because the “political and social threat” that existed in the 1950s no longer was real to the younger generations of the 1970s. As there were growing numbers of disaffected individuals and the strong pull of the counter-culture movement, led to a situation where the lines between the “human” and the “alien” began to blur.
ReplyDeleteThe distinction that Sobchack makes between mainstream and marginalized SF film is discussed in support of M. Focaults analysis of resemblance and similitude. Distinction exists because in more conservative SF film, the stark difference of the alien Other becomes absorbed by a feeling of universal humanism (resemblance). This can be thought of as an idealized view of the future, where difference is acceptable. Marginalized ideas toward Other-ness differs from the mainstream by its view that difference isn’t so much diffused by a universal humanism as much as it is diffused because there is no difference (similitude). This view is more radical because it does not calculate any difference between humans and aliens because there is no original to the copy.
Taking another point of view, M. Dery points out that SF film is a great vehicle for African American expression as he explains the similarities between African Americans and alien abductees, pointing out the “impassable force fields”, branding and forced sterilization of American history.
Afrofuturism, to Dery is the situation where African Americans, with a history effectively wiped out now has the ability to create a future where there is no past. Afrofuturism can be found in the art of black comics, the futuristic jazz of Sun-Ra, graffiti and hip-hop.
The shift from the emphasis being on the differences to the similarities between aliens and "ourselves" stems from the distance that was created from the fear of nuclear war and the cold war conflict with Russia. People were less suspicious of others and more accepting and SF reflected that in the aliens beginning to look more like "us". Personally I also think it could arise from the idea that people became more aware of the many government cover-ups and other scandals that took place over the years. This could be interpreted as the "bad guys" look like us because sometimes they are "us". That's just my opinion, I'm not movie author.
ReplyDeleteResemblence refers to sameness or similarities between us and the aliens while similitude highlights the differences or areas where they are not like us.
The African American experience is paralled by many SF films in that it illustrates ideas of alienation and persecution. There were many films that exemplified this: "Planet of the apes" "Starman" come to mind where people were persecuted for being different. Obviously a theme many African Americans could relate to. While I've never seen "The Brother from another planet" it certainly shows the idea of traveling a great distance and being a stranger in a foreign land.
Finally as a former comic book reader I can remember when Milestone came out with Hardware and Icon and the surprise some readers had to the flagship series featuring Afican American heroes. Another example of "afro-futurism" would be the evolution of modern rap/hip-hop from break dancing and partying to spoken word reflecting the experiences of their culture in modern times.
Dave Nawrocki
section 301
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ReplyDeleteTom Burns 319-002
ReplyDeleteIn the previous article we read and wrote about the influence of great social factors like the Great Depression, World War II involving the Holocaust and the nuclear age, and also the growing climate of fear surrounding Communism and the McCarthy blacklist, and how that transcended that disposition of fear and uncertainty into the cinema, among other media, including films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers, which we viewed. But even in 'Body Snatchers' we discussed the burgeoning non-conventional heroes and supporting actors that were presented such as Miles who was a divorcee and his friends were in education, not your standard military Joe hero. Characters using rational thought and the human spirit shown through more than earlier “good vs. evil” science fiction monster movies. This notion of humans dealing with aliens and possibly making peace down the road started to present itself in cinema, just as the public was wanting peace and democratic solutions, involving international issues like the withdrawal from the war in Indo-China, as Sobchack talks about also. To further support this idea, an element I discussed in my first visual essay focusing on 1982's The Thing was that upon its initial theatrical release, it did not do well at the box office and did not become more widely watched until it was distributed on video. But my point was, was that two weeks later in 1982 audiences swarmed to the box office to see the positive outlook regarding the alien other in E.T., as opposed to the dooming outlook of The Thing.
In the “Stranger in a strange land” mold Dery writes about the culture and progressive expressionism involving African American culture, and how it ties into the grim realities of slavery and the mass displacement that went on. The stranger in a strange land concept fits perfectly in the world of science fiction as it is often about the heroes journey and traveling to distant places. This progressivism can be seen in all realms of media as it is a genre, especially in a lot of funk and hip hop acts throughout the years, with acts like George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelics, Roger Troutman and Zapp, Ultramagnetic M.C.'s, Del the funkee homosapien, and MF Doom to name a few. In their respective times in hip hop, these artists were often instrumental in advancing rhymes and beats to the next level.
There is a shift in the representation of the alien other that begins in the late 1970s in both mainstream and marginal science fiction cinema. Gone are the radically non-human, threatening aliens for a more human, friendly alien. This is due to a shift in the culture of American society and changes in the way Americans view political and social threats. In the post WWII era of the 50’s Americans were fearful of the bomb, and threat of communism. The cold war era issued a bunch of science fiction films that had the alien representing the threat of communism, and was looked upon as a very unwelcomed outsider that threatened the values of every day American life. The 1970s and 1980s offered a much calmer atmosphere, and there was less threat and mass hysteria surrounding the period directly post WWII, thus allowing for a different representation of the alien or “other” in science fiction films. Sobchack makes a distinction between marginal and mainstream science fiction cinema by introducing the terms “resemblance” and “similitude”. She claims that mainstream science fiction films of the era usually took the “resemblance” approach with the representation of the alien, which means the aliens are like us, yet speak across difference. In marginal science fiction films of the time, they usually took the “similitude” approach in the representation of the alien, in that the “aliens are us”. “Human being does not serve as an original model here.”(Sobchack, 297)
ReplyDeleteDery explains that African Americans’ history seems to be fitted to explore the conventions within science fiction. Just the somewhat generic themes of “others” and “encountering new lands”, seems as though they could be great catalyst for African American writers to explore their history and culture and comment on these ideas in any way they see fit within the science fiction genre. Impassable forces of intolerance and technology that “is often brought to bear on black bodies (branding, forced sterilization, etc.)” are other parallels that could be made with African American history and science fiction writing. Dery defines Afro-futurism as speculative fiction that incorporates African American themes and contexts into 20th century technoculture, thus commenting on the future. Two example of Afro-futurism given are George Clinton’s Computer Games, and Bernie Worrell’s Blacktronic Science.
Alex Sokovich - 319
Sobchack, is telling us that the culture at the time was starting to become more interested with the entertainment that is being presented by the way of films and books. Sobchack states that, “the figure of the “alien” no longer poses the political and social threat it did in the Science Fiction of the 1950’s.” (page 293) The government was using this paranoia in the 1950’s as a scare tactic. This was also around the time of the cold war, so communists were the ones that the government wanted to treat as aliens. The government did this because the did not want to have them threaten the American way of life.
ReplyDeleteAlso in Sobchack quotes Michael Foucault’s explanation of the difference between resemblance and similitude. Foucault states that “Resemblance serves representation, which rules over it; similitude serves repetition, which ranges across it.” (page 294)
I believe the it that Foucault is referring to is the difference in the way that Science Fiction films were made in the 1950’s
Mark Dery wrote about Afro-futurism as the African-American’s way to express themselves in the Science Fiction genre. He uses the example that “African Americans, in a real sense, are the descendants of alien abductees;” (page 180) He says this referring to the first time the African people were brought over to the U.S. from Africa. Dery also shows examples of how Afro-futurism is put into play in modern cultural practices. Two examples are music and graffiti. Dery references musician George Clinton and New York graffiti artist B-boy as examples.
Theresa Ennis
Film: 319
Blog 4
Sobchack describes the shift of culture and temperament in the seventies up to the eighties. This change came from the astonishing shifts in the atmosphere, and in the culture of fear perpetuating from the Cold War era hysteria. Becoming empowered and the quest for peace reversed the anxieties of loss of self and loss of rights. Fundamentals of love and prosperity gave way in the seventies a chance to reinvent the genres take on the outside alien, thus making them similar to humans rather than obscure. Which thus relates towards to the difference that Sobchack views in mainstream science fiction as opposed to marginal science fiction ideas on aliens. In mainstream the alien resembles the human, which is further by the demeanor and emotional actions taken by the aliens to be human. Whereas in the marginal science fiction film the reflection of how we as humans are alien in many ways is explored. Which correlates with hoe Sobchack feels is the difference between the Resemblance and Similitude. With Resemblance, the expression of the human and alien being the same expose this term. Similitude on the other hand gives distinction between the two species, but also allows for the investigation of what is similar between them.
ReplyDeleteMark Dery relates that since the African American experience in many way correlates to the way in which aliens come from another place, they are still us. In this I mean the abduction of the African American to the United States, thus creating a feeling of being in a different world. Civil Rights had been continuing and pushing forward and with the use of Science Fiction, the medium to express the travesty of ignorance. "Speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of 20th century technoculture—and, more generally, African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future." Is how Dery describes Afro Futurism and though the performances of such acts as graffiti art and the emergence of hip hop, the African American community was able to express themselves in this area.
Vivian Sobchack argues that there was a shift in the culture around the late seventies. There became a culture where subjectivity and affect are “decentered , dispersed, spatialized, and objectified.” Even the idea of alienation was literalized. Because people began seeing and thinking in a more open and less protectionist manner, the idea of the “non threatening” alien emerged, which portrayed aliens as sometimes evil but still retaining qualities that in the past had only been assimilated with humans.
ReplyDeleteMore marginal science fiction films such as Repo Man and The Brother from Another Planet are slightly different according to Sobchack. While they recognize the difference or “otherness” in the idea of the alien , the idea of alienation is erased by portraying the being alien as a universal condition in which we are aliens to the aliens and they are aliens to us. Whereas conservative mainstream Sci Fi emphasizes the other or diference of the alien, even if they are embracing or briging a distance to the alien. Conservative mainstream films assert a resemblance, or shows that aliens are “just like us” but not quite same on a hierarchical level. However the more marginal science fiction films assert a similitude; they do not present a hierarchical order in alien or human roles but speak across sameness and are non hierarchical and reversible.
Mark Dory discuses the potential for Sci Fi as a vehicle for expressing the African American experience because of the alienation many Africans have been subjected to as well as the use of technology against the African-American. He defines afro-futurism as “speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of twentieth century techno culture-and more generally African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prostetically enhanced future.” He locates afro futurism in paintings such as Basquiats "Molasses", films such as John Sayle's The Brother from Another Planet, as well as music such as George Clinton's "Computer Game".
Joe Steigerwald 319
The shift in the science fiction genre that occurred in the late 1970’s and early 80’s was due to the shift in culture. Sobchack believes that the shift occurred because the culture shifted away from widespread paranoia, fear, and conspiracy of the 1940’s and 50’s. These fears arose due to nuclear warfare, government distrust, and fear of losing a war itself. Many values and ways of living changed for people because there wasn’t war going on, there was a change in entertainment, and a change in music as well. The end of World War II and the Vietnam War caused people to let their hair down a bit more. The people’s overall culture changed along with everything else.
ReplyDeleteScience fiction characters took a turn as well. The aliens were not typical; instead, they were in more recognizable forms. Sobachack said that they were “just like us”. Science fiction, I argue, made the change to fit the needs of the people. If the genre wants to find success, it too needs to fulfill the needs or wants of what the people care to watch. The people didn’t have the same fears; therefore, the genre needed to change the evil character or feared character in the films.
Dery defines Afro-futurism as speculative fiction. Since African Americans didn’t have the best past, they will speculate about the future because they don’t want to look forward to what the future brings. Afro-futurism combines African American concerns and culture with forward-looking aspects of technology and the future. One could argue that some science fiction ideas are based off of African Americans past concerns and past culture.
FILM 301
Victor 319
ReplyDeleteThe 70's saw aliens in science fiction becoming less alien because as the decade went on, politics and society in general was going through changes. The paranoia and prejudice of the previous two decades was shifting towards a more open and experimental mindset. Thus, the aliens you see in 70's films are usually meant to represent some aspect of humans or the human experience, with an emphasis on our universal similarities rather than our racial and/or political differences. Basically, by embracing difference, you celebrate similitude.
African Americans during this time lived in a world of de facto segregation, many of them could remember when it was in the law books. This isolation and concentration, along with myriad other factors, bred a distinct African American cultural identity that focused on self reliance. It also gave people a sense of being “strangers in a strange land,” a concept that would find itself featured again and again in black film, including the science fiction genre.
A couple of examples of how the culture manifested itself with a view towards futurism was in the artistic graffiti style and the pre- techno elements of hip hop.
Sobchack credits the shift in science fiction to “friendly” aliens to the “cultural logic of late capitalism whereby the very conditions of cultural alienation are not only found acceptable, but also euphorically celebrated as liberating.” By the 1970s, the cold war was over, and it proved that capitalism was stronger than communism. The alien as a metaphor for communism was no longer needed. American society entered an age of “material literalism” and “comfortable familiarity” – a sort of all encompassing acceptance of anything we’d come across. This lends itself to science fiction where the alien is accepted as “just like us.”
ReplyDeleteTwo types of science fiction emerged from this: the mainstream “embraced the alien” as similar to humans, and the marginal “erased the alien” suggesting that humans are as alien as aliens. Mainstream science fiction posits a “resemblance” between humans and aliens, suggesting that American democracy and culture is now safe for outer space. Sobchack explains, “we can see… American ‘humanism’ literally expand into and colonize outer space…” The idea is that since America “won” the cold war, American culture must be the best. Therefore we are justified in spreading it everywhere. The idea of “similitude” looks at post-cold war American society in a different way. It focuses on the alienation of the individual. A great example of “similitude:” “the Brother from another planet is as human and as alien as any alien-ated human extraterrestrialized in New York’s Harlem.” “Similitude” is marginal science fiction, suggesting that perhaps humans are aliens too.
Mark Dery describes Afro-futurism as “African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future.” This means that Afro-futurism is science fiction that can be directly related to the African-American experience. Dery explains that “African Americans, in a very real sense, are the descendants of alien abductees; they inhabit a sci-fi nightmare in which unseen but no less impassable force fields of intolerance frustrate their movements…” Metaphors on slavery and racism can be easily interpreted in science fiction. Afro-futurism can be found in comics like “Hardware” and in new interpretations of reggae music (for example, Lee “Scratch” Perry).
Sandra Figueira - Film 301
Julianne Arnstein 314
ReplyDeleteThis shift is due to the historical background. The aliens of the '50's and '60's were Communists with atom bombs. In the '60's and the '70's, drafted men disappeared into war and came back changed, like an alien in the wrong place. But as we approach the '70's and '80's we see more acceptance. Racism is changing and more people are fighting for equality. HIV and homosexuality is being brought to the public's attention. And life at home is changing: women are more commonly working and kids are being raised in a more equal environment. This is why the aliens were suddenly depicted as "like us". In Bladerunner the robots were created by people and look exactly like people. And they feel some of the emotional pain we do, as Baty feels upset that his girlfriend is dying.
Resemblance is like Robby from Forbidden Planet: he resembles a female in reproduction and is a friend to humans, but he is clearly a robot and is completely controlled. Similitude is like Baty from Bladerunner: he looks and acts like a human, he has even developed feelings and a relationship; but he knows and we know he is not human, only similar to a human. Mainstream SF is when an alien is fitting in like a human, but marginal SF is when people are looking at themselves as aliens, which becomes the next point.
African-Americans were starting to assimilate into society with less and less open prejudice in the '70's and '80's. The law was starting to work on their side. But although they could start to fit their lives in with everyone else, they did not feel like everyone else. They felt different, like an alien in the neighborhood. Afro-futurism is a concept of the successes of African-Americans in the future. Not that they haven't been successful, but this a bright outlook toward the many amazing things to come. It is also the idea that African-Americans will always be different and that they should embrace it. Two examples are the beautiful and artistic graffiti and the early elements of hip hop. Hip hop is definitely a sign of Afro-futurism. It is dominated by African-Americans, it made popular the use of ethnic names, and it put African-Americans on a level (if not a higher level) with everybody else.
Ron Film 301:
ReplyDeleteThis shift occurred in the late 1970’s because there was a change in viewpoints in our society. The term ‘alien’ was usually a substitute for our fear of the unknown, which in the 1950’s was communism. The shift changed so much that many of the aliens can be considered friendly and poses no threat to us. The distinctions between mainstream and Marginal (SF) are both positive but have slightly different meanings. When Sobchack talks about the ‘mainstream’ belief of aliens it believed that aliens are ‘like us’ but maintaining there is indeed a feeling of ‘difference’ or ‘otherness’. The ‘marginal’ belief has a different approach in the fact that it is believed that aliens are not in fact ‘like us’ but ‘are us’ which is saying that we are in fact aliens. Resemblance can be used as a ‘model’ and the number of copies that can be made from that model. Similitude can be defined as differences and similarities in aliens and humans. These concepts are applied when comparing a human that can be ‘copied’ would be an example of resemblance whereas similitude is used in SF when discussing postmodern films and the signs of ‘alien-ness’.
Mark Dery defines Afro-futurism as a “signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically future”. He looks into the African-American experience and shows the struggle for some to look for their history when it has been deliberately ‘rubbed out’. The idea of using African-Americans in SF could be used because of the terrible persecution they faced all because they were different. Some of the cultural practices include hip-hop culture as well as well as movies.
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ReplyDeleteThe shift in view of the alien "other" can largely be attributed to the end of the war time mentality and a turn towards global awareness of other cultures. People are more familiar with media and image as representation and can more easily relate to a situation that they themselves have not personally seen. There are strong under currents of counter culture wishing to connect us all instead of divide us.
ReplyDeleteAlthough they are both meant to be positive, according to Sobchack there are two distinct styles on how the "alien" other is to be perceived. One is the conservative mainstream SF by which the "Difference of the alien OTher becomes absorbed in the homogeneity of a new universal humanism" (293) In other words what makes this encounter positive or the alien likable is it's more human features/qualities or it's ability to be like us. This would be and example of resemblance. In marginal SF differences are more diffused, it is accepted that there are many differences yet what makes the alien accessible to us is how much we are similar. It's not how much the alien is like us, but how much we are like each other or similitude.
Dery compares the abduction of African slaves to that of alien abductees. I had never thought how much these two situations, one straight from history and one out of Science Fiction, actual are alike. Dery believes that this and other such Dery defines Afro-futurism as the "African American signification that appropriates images of technology and prosthetically enhanced future" (180) This meaning African American Artists that use symbols and ideas from SF to address themes concerning them. Afro-futurism can be seen and heard in media such as movies like "The brother from another planet" and in music from such artists as George Clinton and my personal favorite Herby Hancock's "future shock".
michael adams
319
Film 319
ReplyDeleteIn her essay, Sobacheck discusses a shift in the way the alien is viewed. No longer is the ‘other’ viewed as a threat, but a welcomed resemblance of ourselves. These new “more human than human” aliens function as a marker, distinguishing “postmodern culture’s paradoxically totalized heterogeneity". Rather than being recognized as a mass culture reacting to a different or “alien” mass culture, this new alien reminds the postmodern culture of itself. In other words, the more different they are, the more they remind us of ourselves as we like to be recognized; as individuals. A prime example of this is Roy Batty’s role in Blade Runner. As discussed, he is the more animated, more human like character in contrast to Deckard in the film. His plight is representative of the human condition; his greatest fear is his own death.
I think Dery’s biggest example of how the African-American experience allows SF to serve as a vehicle for expression is exemplified in his correlation to the “Alien other” and the African slave. These peoples were literally abducted and “inhabited a sci-fi nightmare in which unseen but no less impassable force fields of intolerance frustrate their movements”, a nightmare that persisted in some form until the 1980’s after the Black Power Movement. At this time, a cultural shift began and things like Hip-hop began. He relates the conveyance of digital or electronic sounds through the voice, known as beat-boxing as one example of Afro-futurism and the use of the vocorder, which digitizes the voice as another. Afro-futurism then is the “African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future”.
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ReplyDeleteAccording to Vivian Sobchack, there was a shift in the representation of alien beginning in the late 1970’s and take on a friendlier aspect. This shift occurs because people had moved on from the paranoia and violence that had happened in the past 35 years of our country. From World War II era to Vietnam, America had been very active in world affairs. Science fiction film directors decided to take a peaceful approach during this era. Instead of having the alien “other” appear to be non-human, they depicted them as friendlier and human like. An example of this would be Yoda from Star Wars. He has some of the characteristics of a human and is able to communicate and interact with humans.
ReplyDeleteThe struggles that African Americans have endured over the years have been able to incorporated into science fiction films. Mark Dery defines Afro-futurism as “African American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future” (181). He goes onto talk about how it appears in modern cultural practices. Examples of this would be graffiti and hip-hip music.
Quentin Hughes-Film 301
Sobchack states that there is a cultural shift that occurred in the 70’s and 80’s that changed the representation of the alien view. This shift was in both mainstream and marginal American sci-fi films. As stated by sobchack about the shift “To maintain not that aliens are like us, but rather that aliens are us” (pg297). This new postmodern view had the country changing the view of aliens as human with a friendlier aspect rather than the “unknown” that sci-fi films have previously depicted aliens. Examples would be movies like the Terminator where the Terminator takes a human form but is really a robot or E.T where the alien takes on a more friendly and protective roll. This cultural shift in the 70’s and 80’s was because of the more peaceful atmosphere the country was in compared to the paranoia from the 40’and 50’s. Movies like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Thing are good examples of films from the 50’s that illustrate paranoia and fear. The country started to escape the paranoia of warfare, radiation, and nuclear war after World War II and the Vietnam War when the country could relax again. With the country out of war and the fear gone in the people sci-fi movies had to interest audiences in a different approach. This is why the cultural shift and the shift of the alien view changed in films in the 70’s and 80’s.
ReplyDeleteAfro-futurism would be the cultural struggles that African-Americans have dealt with and incorporating in a technological future. Dery defines this term by “African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future” (pg 180). This concept can be seen in movies like Brother from Another Planet and even in comic strips like Milestone “Media’s Hardware.” In these examples there are both technological and futuristic features in the films, also both show the cultural struggle African-Americans have faced in the past or go through in today's society.
film 301
After the 1950s film itself began to shift away from being a merely a spectacle. The motion picture has assimilated itself into American life and no longer lived to produce only "oohs and awws" from the audience. Once an alien was allowed to become more than a spectacle to be gawked at, it was given the opportunity to become three dimensional. The alien could have thoughts and feelings just like a human.
ReplyDeleteThe mainstream scifi suggestions a "new universal humanism" where no matter how different we are we share common ideas, feelings and thoughts where in marginal scifi the alien other is different but more human than we are. They
Resemblance points out the similarities between humans and aliens by focusing how we are different. Where as Similitude, being the opposite, points out our differences by focusing on how we are the same. The mainstream sicifi uses resemblance creating a sense of "aliens are just like us." Marginal scifi goes the route of saying we're not like aliens but we are aliens.
Dery states that African Americans are descendent's of alien abductees and thus have a unique perspective on being controlled by technology they did not possess. AfroFuturism is speculative fiction that address African American concerns regarding technology and prosthetically enhanced future. AfroFuturism is found in paintings such as Jean-Michel Basquiant's Molasses. Another example of AfroFuturism can be found in music like Geroge Clinton's Comptuer Games.
The 1970s were a very different time than the 1950s, in culture, and then naturally in film. The 1950s were a time of fear for Americans. Fear of the unknown, fear of invaders from a far off place (Both Russia) and fear of Alienation from one another. The 1970s, however, brought forth a new attitude of tolerance and acceptance. An idea that we should try to understand instead of drive back, to bring forth instead of push away. The Aliens are among us, and they are us.
ReplyDeleteDerry makes the claim that African Americans are themselves descendants of Alien abductees in a way. The African slave was abducted from his home land and brought somewhere new and strange, much like any sci fi or horror movie you will see. AfroFuturism was best represented in two real life ways, the Graffiti and hip hop of the 1980s. Both gave a creative outlet for a long lasting and personal struggle.
Michael Napoli
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