I remember seeing Lord of the Rings at the movies and thinking Wow. Yes, it was a great looking movie but that is not what impressed me about it, but it was the looks. The Fellowship arrived at the cinemas in 2001 but, I already knew the story as I had read the books for the first time (starting with The Hobbit) over two decades earlier, when I was eight or nine.
What impressed me about the movies was that much of what I saw within was so similar to what I had already held in my imagination for all those years. What has changed since however is that my imagined characters are now the cast from the movie. They have been replaced and in a very subtle way, my imagination has been hacked.
This is not a bad thing per se, but it does interest me in respects to imagination, creativity and their death through consumption. I am sure there are many people here who have read the books well before the movies and I ask you, when you close your eyes, what does Strider look like? Frodo? Gandalf? Most probably, you have been hacked too and hold the same images as I. Actors.
Next question: What does Tom Bombadil look like? Can you answer? He was from the same book and had an entire song-laden chapter given to him yet, didn't appear in the film. How good are your memories now? Personally, I am glad that chapter was removed from the movie as I didn't enjoy the singing in the book and would have hated it even more if I couldn't skip it.
Do you realise the problem?
Albert Einstein said:
If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.
Sure, at the time, movies were not such a massive industry and were out of reach for many but, there is something to be said about the reading of stories rather than the showing. It has to do with the activation of creativity.
When consuming a movie, there is very little space for the imagination as the story moves so fast and the visuals are so strong. There is little room for much thought at all. Imagination is the process of creating thoughts and ideas without having them present. When the movie provides the visuals and the story line, the creative process is not required to act.
However, when reading (or listening for a young child) the imagination is essentially forced into gear and must work to build imagery to make sense of the story. This practice (in my opinion), is vital for future creative abilities, whether it be artistic or analytic because, the imagination is our problem solver.
And, it is a powerhouse at it. It has the ability to imagine the most fantastical of worlds, simulate interactions and work out ways to close the gaps to make it into reality or destroy and rebuild with only a few calories of energy expenditure. One thing it really feeds upon is collaboration though, specifically, diversity of ideas that challenge it to re-imagine again and again.
Do you see the problem yet?
We are more connected than ever and we share stories like we have never done before. For those who watch a lot of shows, do you not notice the same forms, the same premise, the same lines being spoken across them all? Those that watch a lot of movies, how often are you wowed by the visuals yet disappointed by the depth of characters and story? How often do you consume something unique, something you haven't seen before, something that makes you really think?
How much time do you spend using your imagination to close gaps, understand the narrative, create an internal world that is your own individual blend of idiosyncratic views of life. How much time do you spend using the superpower we have been granted through evolution or an unlikely god?
It is our imaginations that drive our species forward, it is our creativity that is able to problem solve and adapt for environments we have never seen before. It is this skill that will bring about world peace, colonies on Mars, free and clean energy or, destroy us. Yes, destruction is part of evolution too.
If we no longer have the capacity to imagine a better world, how do we plan on building one? This homogenisation of imagination where small groups hold strong and similar views of the way things should be, is evident in our polarisation, aggression toward others and an unwillingness to have an even tempered conversation without it devolving into violence.
Without healthy imaginations, reality is lost. This is no fairy tale.
Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]
the film is one of the greatest discoveries of mankind. a kind of ar
tnx for upvote
My mum always read us fairy tales. Almost every evening. It is indeed different process than consuming a story with visuals already there ready.
Something strange I've noticed. After joining Steemit and beginning creating myself again and using my imagination more, it is harder for me to enjoy a film or TV series than before? It just falls flat and I get bored easily and my mind wanders places where I could have taken things differently. Or? It is just that films and TV series are getting more shitty and flat. Haha!
No, you are outgrowing them in my opinion (they are getting worse too) as you are ranging wider in your mental travels, so what is produced for the masses is no longer engaging.
There are definitely a lot of issues I had with the LOTR movie series, most notably the surplus of women in the movies just to not serve as such a sausage-fest, but your message is clear and brilliant.
It's an inevitability for great stories to be made easier to digest for the masses. Hardcore LOTR movie fans, many of them anyway, have likely never read the books, or couldn't be bothered to get through their tediousness. The movies really capture the magic of the books, and present stunning visuals that, I agree, match up very well with what I had imagined in my head while reading them.
It is sad now however indeed, only seeing the actor's faces rather than the character's faces that I remember picturing from the books. The same thing happened to me when I watched the first Harry Potter movie. Daniel Radcliffe is a brilliant actor, but he was nothing like what I had imagined in my head when I had created a visual of "the boy who lived" and so many of the other characters I felt the same way about. Hagrid was pretty spot-on but some of the other choices were just atrocious. Funnily enough though, because of the disconnect I felt about character choices, when I have gone back and read through the books, I can still see glimmers in my head of the original characters that I had pictured, and they haven't all been replaced by the movie's choice of actors. It's strange.
I think imagination will ebb and flow as it always has. We have a larger platform to share our ideas and information, but also a shorter attention span. We want more in our brains, but the quality seems to go down with that desire for more. I definitely think it could do us some good as a society to really think about what we are putting in our brains. Or rather, to just really think more at all. You have that nailed on the head. So long as we continue to be spoon fed our visuals/ideas/stories/etc it leaves no room for growth and development, to accomplish all of the amazing things you spoke of.
I can't say that I am going to banish movies from my life. I do love them, but they also become pretty repetitive. My husband is still really into the Marvel movies, and while fun, I can hardly stomach one more movie. Intro, setup, take-down is so formulaic that it hurts. They are visually stunning, but nothing more, and increasingly more difficult to watch with each release.
Great article. I really enjoyed it.
marketing purposes :)
You should really write an article based on your comment. I can't upvote it too much but I will come and visit your blog soon just based on the effort. Thanks, it is really appreciated.
Haha yes. I suppose the dramatic horse ride between Frodo and Arwen would have been viewed a bit more homo-erotic if it took place the way it did in the book with another male on horseback with him. I wasn't looking for an upvote, but that's very considerate of you. My friend resteemed this and I saw it in my feed, and was intrigued! I love a good philosophy discussion!
Great post mate!! Yep, every day these new generations are being lead to be and behave closer to average uniform blind followers of whatever carrot on the stick the Show Bizniz put in front on them. Gradually suffocating and eventually killing the subtle but vital inner machinery to build imagery of their own to make sense of every story in their lives ahead.
If they do not rebel in time from this trend and submissively and docilely they limit themselves to just following the herd without questioning anything or anyone for not using and exercising their, for now artificially numb, own imagination, rationality and instincts. I'm afraid, that the emancipation and true freedom of humanity will continue blindly advancing trying to keep balance on an already very frayed tightrope.
Just for these two quotes that I have selected above, is that I tend to think and affirm more and more that our generation, specially my own generation, has been one of the most privileged in history. Because those of my age to this day, we have already had the opportunity to have seen & heard, tested & tasted and lived & experienced along 7 decades, 2 centuries and two millennia the greatest variety of changes, challenges, progress and advances that will never be experienced by any human again.
Certainly we, the humanity and every free thinking being will need to beget, breed, grow up and nurture a formidable new breed of rebels, mavericks, renegades, heretics and outlaw warriors to fight and counteract these ongoing and stealthy attempts to narcotize society to prevent them from activate and using what that unlikely god already gave them to survive. On this magnificent and splendorous Blue Planet. :)
It never ceases to amaze me how so much progress, wonder and beauty can be repressed and ignored in the name of power and control. So much opportunity used to put a leash on rather than wings.
Yeah wings!! those are just for those thinking outside 'Tha Box' :)
I’ve heard his argument plenty of times before and didn’t disagree with it, but you’ve done an awesome job of hitting it home right here! I’m resteeming this one.
Thank you very much for the compliment and RS, it is always appreciated.
Further to this is a theory put forward by the French Semiotician Roland Barthes.
He suggested that there were two types of texts:
-- Readerly
-- Writerly
A readerly text is one which someone reads. It is written in such a way that there is no room for interpretation or co-creation by the reader. It is a passive text.
A writerly text on the other hand is written in such a way that if you ask 10 people what was about, they would give you 10 different responses. It is written in such a way that the reader is 'writing' the text with their imagination and co-creating the text. This os the kind of text which are the ones everyone knows, and are remembered for decades (so not necessarily best-sellers). There is active engagement with the text.
As you mentioned, movies being so visual-focussed are readerly texts... there is no room for active engagement.
Although there are some ways which a film could be writerly..... but they're not going to necessarily be the big, popular ones - they are popular because they're easy to consume.
I have never heard this before in this way but I agree. This is why I very rarely use lists and try my best to leave many loose ends and threads to pick up. If there are lessons within, it is not the writers job to teach, it is the readers to learn. Thanks.
"Readerly texts & Writerly texts"I really like these concepts @peterloupelis.
And I agree in general with the focus of your comment. Therefore, I suppose my posts mostly are written in Writerly Texts. However, I'm still struggling to find out, where's the magic button to press to get that engagement on my writerly texts you are talking about. LoL
Yep.
Although engagement in the reader's mind is different to the kind of active engagement we mean in social-media-land which refers to commenting, sharing, liking/upvoting, etc.
Oh ok! Then, that clears things way better. Because on Social Media Land 'active engagement' with and thru my Writerly Texts usually always shine by their absence. 😂
That is great. You're talking about something serious and I am just excited your referencing LOTR. I agree with this whole post. Our brains are wired for information and imagination. Like the difference between watching the news and reading the news, we store it differently. If we stop doing the thinking...someone will do it for is.
There are many offers and many take them up on it.
while I wasn't a huge fan of the singing, Tom Bombadil was a major tragedy to leave out when you understand why he was there. Tolkien explicitly wanted a character that left some mystery in the story, something unexplained, that couldn't be understood logically. Here is Tolkien's explanation of Bombadil from wikipedia
It is a natural pacifist view, which always arises in the mind when there is a war ... the view of Rivendell seems to be that it is an excellent thing to have represented, but that there are in fact things with which it cannot cope; and upon which its existence nonetheless depends. Ultimately only the victory of the West will allow Bombadil to continue, or even to survive. Nothing would be left for him in the world of Sauron.[9]
So while not tragic to leave it out, it did leave out a part of the story that Tolkien found important, expressing the pacifist, and to me I just enjoyed that he was left unaffected by the ring.
Some of the quote sounds rather Jiddu Krishnamurthi-esque in their wording which is very interesting indeed.
For me, it was the singing that killed it... ;)
I liked how he was so happy. To be in such a state of mind all the day long. It is something I wish for myself, bit of inspiration. Even though I too found the singing to be, well, skippable without any consequences to the story.
I only read The Hobbit as a child and got to the trilogy when the first movie came out, so I had no problem superimposing the actors over the characters. Otherwise, I'm very strict with the books I love, so it's hard to think of any adaptanion that I was able to enjoy. The characters should be as I imagine them.
As for building a better world, I think first we'd have to agree on a definition of good and I'm afraid we'd end up with lots of different, often contrasting views.
I think the negotiation of differences of definition will build the way toward a better world.
Sadly, I was 2 when the Fellowship came out, so not much chance of reading the books before seeing the movies ( although I grew up on those)...But I know what you mean. I hate movie adaptations, most of the time. I avoid watching movies before I've read the book, because I feel it spoils everything.
To this day, I haven't seen Trainspotting because I haven't read the book yet. I'm very strict like that and for good reason.
Well yeah, that's why we're not encouraged to read anymore...to destroy our imagination :(
Way to make people feel really, really old ;)
I haven't generally read fiction for a decade or two so movies were a guilty escape. I rarely watch them anymore either :) Now, I write and see what my imagination has to offer.
@tarazkp Absolutely agreed! Books are way better than movies in my point of view. And way more enjoyable! They allow your imagination to take action and create all those images that books do not provide. I certainly understand why Einstein said that; the process makes the child's brain create images and this is like a workout for the brain!
Yes, it is that early exercise that likely builds strong problem solvers in the future.
Very interesting train of thought. I never really thought about it before but you are correct most technological advances were once thought of as fantasy and imagined in great minds before coming a reality. Without the individual thought patterns that come from the imagination there could be limited growth but I do believe that there has always been those who stand out of the crowd and set them self a different set of standards to the average Joe and they will continue to pursue their imaginations for the benefits of all.
Side note I do love a good movie to stop my imagination running wild somedays. There good and bad in everything.
Yes, there will always be outliers but, will their imaginations be laying a little closer to the average each generation?
I like a good movie too but I haven't seen many lately. No time and when I have watched, I have been underwhelmed. :)
Yes many are underwhelming th are days. They rely to much on technology and special effects and less on the story line. And yes you are correct in that very day we being ourselves closer to average. Very sad to think about. But at least it should be easier for thosewho think outside the box to stand out.
Damn you are right my imagination has been hacked! But I enjoyed the movies a lot so i guess they did a good job. Can't say the same for books that the movie/tv adaptation sucked. I bearly remember the movie version but the characters from my imagination still stay strong. And now I remembered the tv version of childhood's end ( my fav book) and I want to rage so hard....
Let it all out on the blockchain... it is a safe place to rage.
Interesting read. You need imagination to fuel creativity, the best place for you to think is while in the shower. Due to one of the biggest killers of imagination (anxiety) is gone while in the shower. A lot of factors come into imagination and what fuels it is such as reading or merely just letting your mind wander. Imagination is necessary for sustainability that is the bottom-line
For me, my imagination wanders far and wide (perhaps too far at times) in many situations. I spend a lot of time driving and find that a great place for ideas. Keeping them long enough to take note is difficult though.
Always have a pocketbook with you or a notepad app on your phone ideas can sometimes happen in very random places. Don't try to remember them and write them down later write them down as soon as they happen.
I use wordpress as my notepad but this is the blockchain and I would never take notes while driving.
"Without healthy imaginations, reality is lost. This is no fairy tale."
Reality is built upon our imagination
"But , i nearly forgot. You must close your eyes, otherwise you won't see anything" - alice
Bah, now I feel kind of guilty for my preference of doing visual storytelling XD
Nice reminding kick that the sprogs and I need to read more though :)
Your imagination is the ability that you have to form pictures or ideas in your mind of...
good among men
interesting story....
that's really cool...
the greatest discoveries of mankind. a kind of ar.i like it.
nice story.
IMO, Imagination should be what you see and feel in your own self, and not directed by another. Reading, and daydreaming, are the best ways that I've found myself be the most imaginative. Just turn off the rest of the world and focus on your book (or the vast reality that is in front of you in the case of daydreaming).
Books will encourage your imagination to see what is being described, daydreaming will encourage your imagination to see all realms of possibility. I enjoy both :)
Movies do tend to distort perception. After first seeing a movie with a properly casted character, I have a difficult time seeing the original vision I had of that character in my head. On the flip-side, when a movie gets the character so terribly wrong, I tend to be a terrible critic of the movie/series.
wow post i like it boss thanks for sharing