What gives the mass media, particularly advertising and television, their extraordinary power over our lives, so that even the most jaded and sophisticated among us are troubled and fascinated by their allure? The secret, according to Richard Stivers, in this brilliant new book, lies in the curious relationship between technology and magic. Stivers argues the two are now related to one another in such a way that each has taken on important characteristics of the other. His contention is that our expectations for technology ...
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What gives the mass media, particularly advertising and television, their extraordinary power over our lives, so that even the most jaded and sophisticated among us are troubled and fascinated by their allure? The secret, according to Richard Stivers, in this brilliant new book, lies in the curious relationship between technology and magic. Stivers argues the two are now related to one another in such a way that each has taken on important characteristics of the other. His contention is that our expectations for technology have become magical to the point that they have generated a multitude of imitation technologies that function as magical practices. These imitation technologies flourish in the fields of psychology, management administration, and the mass media, and their paramount purpose in human adjustment and control. Advertising and television programs, in particular, contain the key magical rituals of our civilization.In a fascinating analysis of television programming, Stivers shows how various genres--news, sports, game shows, soap operas, sitcoms, etc.--have their distinct mythological symbols. Through dramatized information, they symbolically connect consumer goods and services to desired outcomes--the utopian goals of success, happiness, and health--thus enveloping technology, both real and imitation, in a magical cocoon.
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Add this copy of Technology as Magic to cart. $6.90, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Continuum.
Add this copy of Technology as Magic: the Triumph of the Irrational to cart. $21.00, like new condition, Sold by Arches Bookhouse rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Portland, OR, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Continuum Intl Pub Group.
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FINE in Fine jacket. viii, 240 pp. 8vo, black cloth, gilt spine lettering. A very small bump to head at spine, otherwise pristine. DJ crisp and bright.
Add this copy of Technology as Magic: the Triumph of the Irrational to cart. $34.04, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Continuum Intl Pub Group.
Add this copy of Technology as Magic: the Triumph of the Irrational to cart. $63.95, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Continuum Intl Pub Group.
Add this copy of Technology as Magic: the Triumph of the Irrational to cart. $83.37, new condition, Sold by GridFreed rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from North Las Vegas, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Continuum.