Society of the Spectacle: WTF? Guy Debord, Situationism and the Spectacle Explained | Tom Nicholas

Need The Society of the Spectacle explained? Well, in this episode of What the Theory?, we’re doing just that.

The Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord (a key member of the Situationist International) argues that contemporary capitalist society has become obsessed with images and appearances over all else.

Debord argues that “the spectacle” has invaded our everyday lives not just in the form of image-based advertising but also in the way that we interact with one another.

In this Society of the Spectacle summary video, I provide a brief introduction to Debord’s concept of the spectacle, taking a brief look at the context in which the book was written (including both situationism and the May ’68 Paris uprisings) and unpacking the key arguments included within.

Further Reading

Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord
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Comments on the Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord
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The Gulf War Did Note Take Placeby Jean Baudrillard
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Bibliography

Debord, Guy (2004 [1967]) The Society of the Spectacle. Translated by Ken Knabb. London: Rebel Press. Available online: http://rebels-library.org/files/socie...

Debord, Guy (1988) Comments on the Society of the Spectacle. Translated by Malcom Imrie. [Online] https://libcom.org/files/Comments%20o... [5 February 2019].

Marx, Karl (1867) ‘Chapter One: Commodities’. in Capital: Volume One. [Online] https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx... [5 February 2019]

The Editors of Encyclopedia Britainnica (2019) ‘Situationist International’. Encyclopedia Britannica. [Online] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Situ... [2 February 2019].

Wark, McKenzie (2011) The Beach Beneath the Street: The Everyday Life and Glorious Times of the Situationist International. London: Verso.

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Twitter: @Tom_Nicholas
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