COMS 201 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Technological Determinism, Literary Theory, Social Forces

• School: University of Calgary
• Department: Communications Studies
• Course: COMS 201
• Professor: Samantha Thrift

Document Summary

Technological determinism (medium theory, media ecology, communications history) march. Marshall mcluhan (1911-1980: ca(cid:374)adia(cid:374) literary theorist, philosopher, (cid:862)popular (cid:272)ultural guru(cid:863), (cid:862)prophet of the electronic age, died before internet was invented (computers were invented but not internet, also talks about electricity as a form of communication. (cid:862)te(cid:272)h(cid:374)ology, spe(cid:272)ifi(cid:272)ally, (cid:373)edia decisively shapes how individuals think, feel, and act a(cid:374)d ho(cid:449) so(cid:272)ieties orga(cid:374)ize the(cid:373)sel(cid:448)es a(cid:374)d operate(cid:863) (wood, (cid:1006)37) Theoretical basics: media te(cid:272)h(cid:374)ology is (cid:374)ot just a (cid:858)(cid:272)o(cid:374)duit(cid:859) for the tra(cid:374)s(cid:373)issio(cid:374) of (cid:373)essage; the very nature of the medium can be the key to its social impact. Focuses on how we communicate the message, not just the particular message itself. Not the message of the text, but the form is in a text: media technologies are powerful social forces, does not focus on the content of messages. Four epochs: tribal epoch, literate epoch, print epoch, electronic epoch.