Following our discussion of Disney through Eco and Dorfman, I have begun to discern conversations of the theme park and corporation more in depth. Recently, Disney has become the main topic of conversation in my life due to the Food and Wine Festival. If my friends aren't asking if I want to attend, they're sending me pictures that others have posted of the event. It frankly seems as if my life is filled solely by Disney. While I understand that I live close to the theme park, it's funny to recognize that Disney dominates most of the world's lives, too.
Society's fascination with Disney goes back to Eco's quote: "Disneyland tells us that technology can give us more reality than nature can." When asking my friends why they love Epcot so much, all remarked that it's incredible to travel to multiple "countries" within minutes. My roommate loved that she could have lunch in Italy and then some snacks in China. In real life, this would take hours upon hours of traveling and may not give her the "perfect" experience. My roommate felt content knowing that her lunch tasted good and seemed authentic. Although she has traveled to Italy and is of Italian decent, Epcot's version of the country is great to her. To my roommate, "Epcot is more fun than traveling...It's a great way to experience different cultures without spending money or getting on an airplane."
While I originally did not know why my friends were content shelling out money for mini portions of food and drinks, I do understand their amazement of augmented reality. I am both excited and scared to see what is to come in terms of technology.
Society's fascination with Disney goes back to Eco's quote: "Disneyland tells us that technology can give us more reality than nature can." When asking my friends why they love Epcot so much, all remarked that it's incredible to travel to multiple "countries" within minutes. My roommate loved that she could have lunch in Italy and then some snacks in China. In real life, this would take hours upon hours of traveling and may not give her the "perfect" experience. My roommate felt content knowing that her lunch tasted good and seemed authentic. Although she has traveled to Italy and is of Italian decent, Epcot's version of the country is great to her. To my roommate, "Epcot is more fun than traveling...It's a great way to experience different cultures without spending money or getting on an airplane."
While I originally did not know why my friends were content shelling out money for mini portions of food and drinks, I do understand their amazement of augmented reality. I am both excited and scared to see what is to come in terms of technology.
Hi Kelsey,
ReplyDeleteI still am in thought of our discussion about Eco and Dorfman and the impact of Disney. One quote that stood out to me the most was from when Dorfman explained, “Disney has been exalted as the inviolable common cultural heritage (same-ness) of contemporary man, Disney is the great supranational bridge across which all human beings may communicate with each other” (110). I thought this quote was interesting because at first I read it as a positive thing. When I read "Disney has the ability to bridge across which all human beings may communicate," I ultimately understood it as a positive aspect because it is creating common ground and communication between multiple cultures. Disney is such a large corporation it is almost known by every culture, which creates common ground. However, I think the more we discussed it in class, the more I understood this quote could be read as negative. The fact that a corporation is what is bridging our cultures together is a terrible thing because that means Disney is at the core of many cultures emotions. This creates a type of power that is different than the power of money. Going off of your post, I notice our friends always talk about going to Disney for the Food and Wine Festival, Halloween Horror Nights, etc. During these times I frequently think about the amount of money is being spent just to submerse oneself into a Disney environment. In this environment, you are being surrounded by many ways to spend your money inside the event as well. This way, large amounts of money are going toward this powerful corporation and continues to fuel that power. One thing that interests me about Disney is the fact that there is always a continuous desire to go back. Disney has never been a place for me that I go to once and never want to go back to again. Typically the only thing that stops me from going multiple times a year, is the financial factor. I agree with you in the end that I am a little scared, yet still somehow excited to see what else is to come.