In chapter two of Postman’s book, Amusing Ourselves to Death, he mentions the effect of a culture’s mediums on its epistemology and the resonances it understands. A specific link he mentioned was between literacy and intelligence that formed as a result of a print culture. The more I thought about the more right he seemed. Consider the stereotypical nerd, an individual of superior intellect, and the resonances associated with his defining accessories: glasses, a well-stocked pocket protector, and arms laden with books. He needs the glasses to so that he may clearly read. Without pencils and pens he couldn’t write. And why so many books? The more he reads the smarter he must be. It’s a perfect example of how a medium has molded our way of thinking and is clearly entrenched in our culture as apparent in comic book and cartoon characters such as my personal favorite Dexter from Cartoon Network’s Dexter’s Laboratory.
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4 comments:
I sincerely doubt that stereotypes have been altogether amplified by print culture.
As far as my common knowledge reaches, I'm assuming that stereotypes have been all-too present in our past as well.
For example, I'm sure the social hierachy of monarchy's past portrayed the poor as ragged, possibly rabid, and idiotic. While the poor assumed the identities of their higher counterparts as snobbish, literate, and well-spoken.
Indeed, the stereoypes associated with literacy include your average poindexter, but any individual in pursuit of higher learning has always been portrayed as such.
Funny though that no associations have become of television, at least on a mainstream level. You'd think that the thought of television would bring about images of a bumbling bafoon who drools mindlessly into his cheese-puff bowl.
Maybe in the coming years?
What about Homer Simpson? He matches that description pretty well and he's seen watching tv every episode. It's even in the title sequence.
What I can't think of is a character whose intelligence is linked to television in a positive manner. The closest I can think of is from Dude Where's my Car where CJ knows all about ostriches from watching animal planet.
Homer Simpson isn't pointed to when talking about typical television watchers as often as book-worms, though.
Obviously if I overlooked him, he's not a dominant stereotype. I wouldn't even label him a stereotypical television watcher as much as a drunken bafoon or a satirical version of the average American. The average American just happens to watch television constantly.
Oh, but stereotypes have been influenced by print. Like Matt said, the nerd was born through books while I believe someone "cool" was produced through someone influenced by television. Take Lisa and Bart Simpson. Lisa is a bookworm, per se, and likes to read and study. She in turn, is a intellect. Bart, on the other hand, goofs off and watches television all the time, and he is considered the cool guy at school. The way a person is portrayed on a certain show can also influence a stereotype.
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