Homework 3

   I wholeheartedly agree with Panera and embrace the concept of a different visual reality versus other generations. Being raised in a household where the television, internet, video games, and movies were all readily at my disposal & then being at the helm of the smartphone movement definitely shapes my visual reality in a way that cannot be replicated for anyone fifteen years older than me. I think because our generations has so much visual stimulation in a variety of ways, we have become obsessed with replicating and creating content visually to either express emotion or consume it. But I don't think visual reality is our only reality. Panera claims that younger generations need an entertainment factor to keep our attention in art museums. That's completely false. Visual media is not my ball and chain, and I can be entertained otherwise. Besides, art doesn't have to be entertaining and entertainment doesn't have to be art. I think Panera is disillusioned to believe that witnessing a group of adolescents document an experience means that they're only doing so for the benefit of retinal masturbation. When I visit an art museum and take photos, I'm not doing so because I am uninterested and am trying to twist my boring situation into an entertaining one. It's because I've found something worth cherishing even after the moment has passed.

   As far as the necessity of documentation goes, I think that from some perspectives she is correct. I personally know people who do activities or plan events just for the purpose of documenting and sharing their ~unique~ experience with their followers or friends. In this way, yes they are proving they exist in a specific light. However, if someone documents something for personal use, I don't believe that's an effort to prove their existence. It's merely a keepsake. And what's so wrong with relying on digital media to trigger memories? I had a hard time understanding the point of his argument here that "memory is becoming more fragile" and that's a bad thing. What is this in comparison too? How is using digital media to recall an experience worse than mentally recalling it? Maybe that's just the difference in our visual realities. Mnemonic memory is using aids to recall something and heuristic memory is relying on the cognitive thought process. I assume Panera is saying heuristic memory is better but I see really no justification in this. I can remember events using my heuristic memory just fine, and I just use digital media (mnemonic memories) to bask in that moment in time.

   If one wishes to become an 'emancipated observer', they must simply refuse to rely on their mnemonic memory and stray from their screens. In my opinion, however, an emancipated observe is someone who can still document experiences but solely for personal consumption and not for the benefit of others. I see no harm in recording my visual reality because I'm able to - and it's something I thoroughly enjoy doing.