ePublishing_2_Intertextuality

Intertextuality: Culture and Meaning

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Intertextuality

Wikipedia:
“Intertextuality is the shaping of texts' meanings by other texts”

Is this just a stylish way of talking about allusion or influence?

• Allusion is a figure of speech, in which one refers covertly or indirectly to an object or circumstance that has occurred or existed in an external context.
• Influence: the perception or intention of an author of a text is shaped by other texts he she has read.

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Giddens' concept of "duality of structure":

·      All social conduct presupposes structure, and all structures are in turn reproduced through social conduct

Duality of structure in time and space

Recursive in space:       The actor changes the society, and is changed itself by society

Recursive in time:         The moment influences totality, and while totality may exist without the moment, it influences the moment.

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Conclusion 1: Structure and the Individual

ð   The individual is product and creator of structure and meaning

ð   Internationalization influences the individual, and the individual (e.g. by the use of ePublishing) creates internationalization.

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Structure and Culture

What is the difference between culture and social structure?

Culture: pattern of perception, thinking, or feeling.

Social Structure: pattern of social behavior

Cultural explanation of social structure:

values & beliefs == influence ===> socially patterned behavior

Structural explanation of culture:

socially patterned behavior == influence ===> values & beliefs

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Theories of Culture and the Self

Buzzwords:

·       Culture

·       Internet culture

·       Internationalization

·       Cultural diversity

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How do we create shared meaning?

Three Premises of Symbolic Interactionism

1.  People act on the basis of their meaning.

2.  Meaning arises from social interaction.

3.  Meanings are modified through interpretation by the person. 

Who are we? The reflexive Nature of the Self

 Reading assignment: Schneider 2007. Chapter 2: “Who are we?”

“Mead defines the “self” as the character or personality of a person. Identities that construe the self can be added or modified. Over time, when new information gets added, the organization of character (the self) disintegrates and has to be reorganized in a newer self.

Mead’s evolution of “self”

Moral development of personality or character:

• The “self” is the character or personality of a person.

• Over time [if new information gets added], there is a disintegration of organization in our character.

• The self has to be acted upon in order to become a “reflective self.”

• In this reflective analysis, the “self” appears in consciousness.

• Only if conscious the “self” can interact with other “selves” we can speak of a state of “self consciousness”

• “Self-consciousness” arises in the reflective analysis.

• In the “self-conscious” state of reflective analysis, a new self can emerge in the discussion with other selves.

• “Self-consciousness” is a necessary prerequisite for the growth of the “self.”

• “The growth of the self arises out of partial disintegration, -- the appearance of the different interests in the forum of reflection”(p.379).

Mead, G. Herbert. 1913. "The Social Self". Journal of Philosophy, Psychology, and Scientific Methods. Pp. 373-380.

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Conclusion 2: Culture and the Self

ð   Intertextuality reflects the social process of the emergence of meaning: we use existing cultural products as a basis for reflection in which we create new cultural products.

ð   Trough self-reflection the individual is engaged in the organization of his/her self.

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Conclusion 3: ePublishing, Intertextuality and Cultural Diversity

ð   ePublishing is conductive to the internationalization of media.

ð   Internationalization enriches the opportunities of the individual.

ð   ePublishing is a tool to obtain and dissimilate more culturally diverse information.

ð   With ePublishing we enhance intertextuality and increase cultural diversity

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The Dark Side

Lack of self-reflection leads to moral deterioration:

·  Awareness disappears when we are preoccupied with the objective world.

·  The self needs to be attended in order to be reconstructed.

o If we leave the self as it is and follow habitual character with reference to its values, we are selfish.

o We do not progress, we are conservative in its true sense of the word.

Preoccupation with consumption is one of the main reasons for the lack of self-reflection.

Internationalization of communication (ePublishing) can lead to a global industry promoting unreflective consumption and hereby moral deterioration.

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Disclaimer: The documents linked to other sources on the WWW, others than http://www2.tltc.ttu.edu/Schneider2/ and its subdirectories, do not necessarily express the views of Texas Tech University, Université Paris X, or Dr. Schneider. @Copyright 2007 Dr. Andreas Schneider