In this essay, we're going to discuss the idea of postmodernism and cooperate it the German tv series Deutschland 83 and Stranger Things, as well as Baudrillard's idea of Simulacrum, what it is and how it can be seen through the two different, yet similar shows.
First off though, what is Postmodernism? It's a late 20th-century style and concept in the arts, architecture, and criticism, which represents a departure from modernism. It's an idea represented by different images, stereotypes and art, it could almost be compared to the concept of surrealism. Postmodernism can be seen everywhere in the two tv series. What is Baudrillard's concept of Simulacra or Simulacrum? A Simulacra or Simulacrum, is a representation or imitation of a person or thing, in this case, there are imitations of the two shows. Deutschland's opening scene, as it takes on the appearance of a bricolage - a construction from a diverse range of available material; the process of adapting and juxtaposing old and new texts, images, ideas or narratives to produce whole new meanings. Which similarly, Stranger Things also takes on a postmodernism introduction, except that it takes more of a sci-fi approach. We can also see postmodernism take form in the idea of intertextuality, especially in Stranger Things, it has many 80s references or in other words, takes on the concept of Baudrillard's Simulacrum, such as E.T, which is an indirect reference; the four boys and the alien, which in Stranger Things case, is Eleven, the mysterious girl with superpowers. In terms of Deutschland's 83 intertextuality, it can be seen through how the show uses brands and technology from the past which allows the audience to view it from a modern perspective, it creates a feeling of nostalgia and this again, denotes this idea of a simulacrum; an imitation of today's modern reality, incorporated within the 80s reality.
Furthermore, both of the shows do indeed, mask the basic reality of the two worlds, in Deutschland 83, the East and the West are divided and are both different; the West is more romanticised and is more positive, but unrealistic, for example the scene where Martin is in the supermarket where all the food and fruit look polished and untouched, where similarly, Stranger Things also represents a fake façade of the basic reality in the 1980s also; how the four kids are able to just stay out late at night, do whatever they want and how the parents seemed completely oblivious to their children's lives. That indeed is an unrealistic representation of an 80s society. It can be said that the two shows take on the factor of a pastiche - an artistic work in a style that imitates that of another work, artist, or period, which both of the shows do, the history based show Deutschland 83 romanticises some aspects like the West, and so does Stranger Things, where the children are allowed to stay out late at night and wander about with the parents being completely oblivious to their children's lives.
However, in terms of whether it truly masks the entire face of reality - no. There are some elements, aspects, that are realistic and factual - Deutschland's 83focuses on the two governments and the events of the Berlin Wall, which really did happen in 1961 and was finally destroyed in 1989 and in Stranger Things, it also focuses on the government factor, except its how the government did experiments, which again, also took place in real life, in the early 80s; the show was inspired by the Montauk Project, which was the US government experimentation in psychological warfare, and we can see that Stranger Things took this inspirational turn and adapted it. Is it purely Baudrillard's simulacrum? For both shows, yes and no, the ideas are based on representations of different images, connotations and ideas, but it's also based on facts, however, those facts are deeply embedded, especially in the Stranger Things show, where it's actually based on a real life experiment that took place in the USA during the early 1980s, whereas for Deutschland 83, the facts are more obvious and direct; the Berlin Wall and the division of East Berlin and West Germany.
In conclusion, both of the shows show a variety of similarities and indeed conform to Baudrillard's concept of Postmodernism and Simulacra. Deutschland 83 takes on an unrealistic but factual approach, just like Stranger Things does. In Deutschland 83, it's based on the events of the Berlin Wall and the two governments in the 1980s, where similarly Stranger Things can be seen to also focus on the government factor in the 1980s too. Both shows also adapt to the idea of intertextuality, where some are deeply embedded within the show and aren't as direct; Stranger Things and whereas some, are more obvious and direct, such as in Deutschland 83. In terms of masking the true reality of the 1980s era, yes, both shows mask some aspects, such as in Stranger Things, the four kids are able to just stay out late at night, do whatever they want and the parents being completely oblivious to their children's lives and in similar fashion, Deutschland 83 romanticises the West, where Martin for example, walks into the supermarket and sees all of these foods and fruits completely polished and untouched.
word count: 882
No comments:
Post a Comment