An Introduction to Baudrillard 

Script & sources at: www.thenandnow.co/2023/04/21/an-introduction-to-baudrillard/ ► Sign up for the newsletter to get concise digestible summaries: www.thenandnow.co/the-newsletter/ ► Why Support Then & Now? www.patreon.com/user/about?u=3517018

Ironically, this video represents a hyper real version of the original text.

In my mind, Baudrillard's theories are a call not just for an anti-consumerist stance, but a deeper suspicion for what constitutes a "neutral" commodity. Nicely done

It's always mindblowing and incredibly humbling to know that there were/ are people out there with this much foresight.

This has to be the best intro to Baudrillard I’ve ever seen. And it’s not like Baudrillard is an easy thinker to wrap one’s mind around. Props to you man!

Up until 14:12 I thought I’d finally found a video that introduces structuralism without talking about trees. I was wrong.

Reminds me of the best kind of Adam Curtis documentary. Fabulous

In the times of covid-19 this line of thought becomes especially prescient. Those who are lucky enough work from home, meeting with the images of their co-workers, most of our work is converting once "real" events into "live streamed" events. We consume images of protestors on the streets, who's movement stems from the killing of many but was triggered from the killing of one. We post youtube comments instead of stating our opinions in person. Many wait for the singularity with bated breath. It has in-fact happened. As Mckenna said, a transcendental object at the end of time pulls us near. Things will only get weirder. Like any trip, don't fight it, lean into it...

Oh, ok, fine. I'll read Simulacra and Simulation.

This is so well edited, narrated, animated, written, produced. I really appreciated it.

Honestly, I had to stop the video several times cuz I got chills and a little bit scared! This is a masterpiece in itself, it's a hyperrealistic version of the text , lol. Thank you so much, I'll go and domate for this cuz you made my thesis for me man, so grateful!! ❤❤❤

Thank you for composing this. Without rushing. And embedding the spirit of the Baudrillard in the form of the video. Best,

Keepin' it hyperreal

By far the best explanation of what Baudrillard wants to say in his deliberately convoluted discourse. The man's ideas, while revolutionary, are hidden under so much cryptic language (at least in the English translation of Simulacra and Simulation) that one can easily end up thinking they're not worth the effort. And yes, I still don't get it. Hope the third attempt at reading S&S will prove more fruitful.

you don't understand how important and valuable this channel is. i deeply thank you for making such informative and incredible content

I'd like to introduce some discussion, because the thought of Baudrillard on one hand seems reasonable, in the other is symptomic of the "postmodern condition". He actually manages to consider the more "unmaterially social" part of human life, as opposed to Marx's intention to analyse the repercussions of the material reproduction of society. I'd say that the insights he offers may be vital for the analysis of contemporary society, since we are actually ever more focused on marketing rather than production, thus aiming to produce needs before fulfilling them; the amount of "useless labour" is ever-growing, and the "bullshit jobs" number is ever-increasing in this post-industrial epoch. So on the one hand the analysis of hyperreality is useful for studying the way in which we ourselves get detached from reality, in order to really get what the "unlimited flow of desires means": they aren't real, they are artificial, simulations, the "new pleasure" is the simulacra of the "old pleasure" that has been eradicated from its reality, thus from the genuine fulfillment of the human being. This leads to an unlimited search, marketable by the post-modern capitalistic machine. On the other, it is symptomatic of the "post-modern condition" of the destruction of the community, of the ever-pervasive commoditization, isolation of the individual and loss of the "Gemeinschaft", community, for the "Gesellschaft", society. The socialisation of the individual in an atomized form creates the need for a common language to disperse, and nihilism, opinionism and the "fake news culture" take the center of the stage, dethronizing the community-centered "grand narratives", be it for the industrial worker community in a factory, or a village, or anything else that has a common interest and values. The destruction of the community brought forward by the massification, marketization and liberalisation of life has made the individual asocial although socialised, thus making the "sign-value" become hyperreal, because of the plurality of "realities" that it tries to subsume under itself: what makes the grounds of Baudrillard's analysis, but also of Bataille's that I've heard echoing in the end of this video. The "expenditure culture" and hyperreality are surely new perspectives that open up new interpretations of the past, too, but I'd like to remember how Marx in the Grundrisse when he talks of the method of Political Economy (I'd say of knowledge in general), specifies how the abstract category of labour, although always present in human history, has only taken form and though in the latest centuries. The new forms of consciousness created by the post-modern world are making us reinterpret the past, interestingly opening up new perspectives, dangerously making us risk the distortion of that period. To conclude, I'd also like to remark that the late Baudrillard's views became a bit too hyperreal in themseves, but this is just a matter of my opinion.

VR/AR will take this to a whole new level. This video will be way more relevant a couple of years from now. Great job!

A few points that occurred to me while watching: The claim that a mechanism produces such things as language, ideology, and evaluative frameworks, is itself an assertion of a certain structure of at least phenomenological reality. The problem of living in a system of symbols defined in terms of other symbols is nothing new. It's as ancient as consciousness itself. In a rapidly changing world, the temporary can seam unsubstantial. Diachronic investigation is actually just synchronic investigation spread over time. Synchronic analysis is a subset of the corresponding proper diachronic analysis, not the other way around. Symbols can carry meaning across time even when the synchronic context changes. To only consider the synchronic is a fallacy. The temporal dimension is what allows for the process of abstraction/generalization to occur. Language is layered and interwoven in time. In fact I believe it is the case for all representative structures (this is a superclass of language; it includes other more ancient structures like the phenomenology of colour vision). Another way to think about it, is to imagine synchronic analysis taking place over an expanded spacetime domain (expanded from the original analysis space). I don't like how the word "ritual" is used here. It confounds that which is axiomatic (to be done for its own sake), and that which is to be done without reason. The reason for your action can very well be because of its dogma status. If I "voluntarily" give you a gift on your birthday, it is not of a purely personal volition. The idea of honouring you with a gift is not an original idea on my part. Am I not adhering to some cultural convention? Even if it isn't politically compulsory. If I "ritualistically" engage in consumer culture, is it less or more ritualistic than a dance around a fire? Basically, "ritual" here, is superfluous to both the enacted version of ideology and the suggestion of a fundamentally personal eminence, which materially grounded postmodernism does not allow. Btw I'm not arguing for or against its existence in this paragraph, only that ritual is awkwardly placed, either in this video and/or Baudrillard's ideas. I find myself considering the structure of identity with structure being defined as that which persists. I am reminded of the hindu concept of brahman and the Jungian archetypes of phenomenology.

Wow the music choices and awesome video collage make the text even more profound. Love this.

Damn your voice is so soothing, keep up the good work!

Excellent! Really enjoyed watching this. A brilliant intro to Baudrilliard's ideas, especially for those new to them. I shall definitely contribute to your patreon page

This was so brilliant, thank you for this. So very helpful. I already give to your Patreon, and when I needed to understand about Baudrillard, here was your video. Invaluable.

“The computer revolution will similarly free him from dull repetitive routine” if only

Voltaire once said that if British accents didn't exist, it would be necessary to invent them

Ohh someone likes Adam Curtis.... Nice homage, I love this.

I adore this page, goodluck and keep the good content comin!

At first, I wasn't certain where you were going with this. I stuck it out, and you did not disappoint. Great vid.

This must be the best informative Video i've seen over the last years. Dude, thank you so much!

This is one of the best primers on baudrillard I have ever watched. Good work!

This is really brilliant, just started studying Baudrillard and this has been super helpful!

I have watched very many Baudrillard explanation videos on this website and this is hands down the best one.

thanks so much for this, I applaud you - story line, production like music and images, your voice is just brilliant!

This is such a brilliant video this has greatly helped me to understand better or explore/ read about more about this transcend philosopher Baudrillard. Highly appreciating.

This video is incredibly well-made. Thank you!

I've been interested in Baudrillard for a while now, and it's difficult for me to understand him when I read him. This video is amazingly helpful in scaling down some of the broader points in a way that facilitates digestibility. Thank you!

Thank you very much for this video. The way you explain and give examples of the different concepts is very helpful for a person like me who was introduced to different concepts of philosophy through discussions of politics and political theory. The first philosophy book I picked up (a month ago) was simulation and simulacra because it seemed so interesting when I heard people explain certain parts of the book. It was however a very difficult read for someone as myself who went in almost fully blind. I read the book and came out confused about certain topics and a pretty clear understanding of others. Before reading it again Ithought I would se if I could find some videos that would enlightening me on the parts I had a hard time wrapping my head around. This video definitely helped me a great deal and I'll be using some notes I took from this video when I read it again

The quality of research put into this video is freaking astounding.

This really says a lot about our society

In a world in which we are constantly battered with simplified , sound bitten snippets of narrative I love the careful deconstruction of the elemental forces of complex ideas ....I love this video.

Man, your content is great. It's presented beautifully and at the same time the information is both accurate and made easy to digest. keep this up.

You know the concept of the simulation seems to parallel Debord’s concept of the spectacle

Baudrillard is hyper real. No one of us has met the guy in real life.

Fantastic video as usual.

This video was masterfully created! Bravo!!

Thank you so much. I have been reading nothing but Baudrillard, Derrida and Delueze. Every time I get a chance to see a video essay on one of the is much welcomed.

Baudrillard's work is just as relevant and important as it is difficult to digest-- very! So thank you for making this video, and with the tonal presence of his work, not just clinically reviewing.

I’m so grateful for content like this

There is so much content on RU-vid you have to sort the wheat from the chaff. Sometimes you’re lucky you find that rarest of content, educational , enjoyable and well produced. Your channel is just that. Keep up the great work ! And a brilliant summary of a dense topic.

Dude, thank you for making this video. This helped me so much in my undergrad thesis

This is a brilliant video mate. Keep up the content x

dude, awesome work. thank u so much.

🏆best video seen in a while! Thank you for your work.

Beautifully made!!

How do you know when you're liberated? And what do we do after? I still feel so stuck in this profit driven & abstract society. And learning about all this postmodern theory (I think, anyway) is very useful, but it also makes me feel lost. Where does one go after realizing this is what society is? Are we expected to live in cognitive dissonance and just continue living & working in this hyper real society? The notion that hyperreality engulfs culture and the narratives we tell ourselves will continue to ruminate in the back of our minds until we, as a society, come together and change something. Is change even possible though? I dont see mass media going anyway ever. But how many people actually care? Ask anyone on the street, or your co-workers, or family members what their opinion is on this subject and they wont care because they work a 9-5 job and just want to spend time mentally discharging with family, friends, video games, drugs porn etc etc after a difficult work week. So yeah... What happens now? Or is that a futile question?

Possibly your best video so far.

υπέροχη δουλειά!! a Greek fan here!!

Great video. I need to watch it again to go deeper. Baudrillard shared an accurate portrait of what we are living now. A vision so deep and complex about post industrial society. greetings from chile. new subscriber.

I think there is something beyond “sign value”, perhaps a simple “assigned value”. Musicians call it “G.A.S.”, gear acquisition syndrome. You play a Stratocaster, you always have, you never cared for Les Pauls or hollow bodied guitars; until one day you do. You sort of just get around to appreciating it, then you begin to obsess over every aesthetic detail of the thing. Could be a ‘69 Impala, or WWII fighter plane. Maybe the next gen CPU, or a specific type of pontoon boat. What wasn’t your poison becomes your new obsession. It’s not just the features or utility, or the social cache... it’s the thing itself. You just.. get it now. It’s shape, it’s context, its style.. it’s existence demands that you make it your next possession. It had no value to you, but now you get it, and now you have assigned a value. Perhaps Baudrillard has defined a myriad of reasons why you caught the bug, but now that you’ve got it, the thing is intrinsically desirable, it’s beautiful on its own. You assigned a new value, upon incrementally discovering that value.

Amazing discovery mate! Thanks so much

Beautifully made. Thank you

this is a phenomenal video, thank you so much.

One of your best videos, for sure.

Fantastic video. It totally describes my life.

Prescient indeed! Thank you!

This idea has been discussed for centuries, but now as technology becomes increasingly more intertwined with our daily lives, its deeper implications become even more relevant!

I will never successfully escape the example of the tree in videos from Then & Now. Nevertheless, the content is amazing, it is a great introduction to the evermore significant ideas of Baudrillard. 👍

Fantastic video!

Really enjoyed this, reminded me of an Adam Kurtis documentary

this is the one that convinced me to subscribe !

WONDERFUL ANALYSIS. GREAT.

This is fantastic. Great archiving! Thank you for the post.

really fantastic overview, TYSM

Loved this. This is actually very relevant to startups and creating new software creations. This was very inspiring to me. Hope to reference to this video essay in a future video of mine.

Awesome video man, nice job. I wish you would've kept the music that is in the background att 11:11 throughout the entire video, at least on the parts where you don't have any background music. Gives a nice atmosphere

Excellent presentation.

Thank you! Keep on helping our world back on the right tracks again!

Really well made video, good stuff

Love this "introduction to" series.

Excellent content. Really top notch.

I'm really struggling with the density and seemingly drug induced nature of Simulacra and Simulation but what I'm getting so far is that whatever fits the existing structure strengthens the symbolic relationships of society and pull it into a social capitalism simulacra that is flat and impossible to distinguish from a digitized simulation because of how empty it has become. Social capitalism is the direction of movement because the capitalist elements allow dollar amounts to create exact and simplified relationality amongst everything while anesthetizing people's pushback against this perfect relationality by giving them a minimal value through basic needs that coerces them to stay in the system rather than risk going negative in value and ceasing to exist. People become objects to these passive but self reinforcing forces. Our collective desire for structure is becoming increasingly enslaving because the technology which is evolving out of this system is allowing the creating of perfect mappings of the whole within a smaller, flatter, digitized structure, which itself is constantly compressing and flattening the existing lexicon of symbols through relationality. He constantly refers back to societies that emerge that have retained their identity separate from the self flattening patterns (such as the native americans who have never heard of Jesus, or amazonian tribes who haven't modernized into the 20th century, or terrorists) that represent the real and which is immediately destroyed by and synthesized into the simulacra. Technology has made destruction and synthesis of what does not fit the existing order easy because algorithms can easily identify how these contrasting orders relate and differ to the current order and thus figure out the most efficient way to add it to the main order without putting stress on the system and then quickly flatten and degrade it through this continual compression and flattening any differences in how they represent these sacrificed anarchists. We've even synthesized Nazism into this structure, with an understanding these were flawed men who are no different that our own genetic code who existed to show us the failure of fascism rather than a separate societal ideal which humanity can define itself as separate and different from. Determinism has eliminated any passion behind notions of good and evil. This is what the humans who built the system want as this efficiency maximizes production of what the system has determined is valuable, the currency of production which can improve not only every person, but every place. The final wave of technology allows the human body itself to be destroyed and synthesized into the system as cybernetics and AI meld technology and humanity. By this time human's value of it's own subject nature has been flattened so much by how the forces around humans drive their behavior that there is no resistance to this human-machine melding as the objects of technology and the social order have more willpower, driven by ruthlessly efficient algorithms, than the actual human subjects flattened to understand the quality of their life as a simple a numeric value. The Matrix seems to give hope through anarchy, nihilistic grewl consumption living, and free choice of thought on what to place value in. As the economic value of Zion is null, the human is forced to start from square one to define value and relationality of the world around it, with survival being the first instinct to be revived from the malaise of the real (desert of the real).

Thank you! This is brilliant.

great video essay mate...thanks

@21:02 was a major loss of opportunity to prove that his philosophy has been accurate for a lot longer than most of us assumed. Rather than mentioning Disney he should have brought up America. America in of itself is not real, rather it is a very carefully crafted hyperreal. I am of course referring to colonialism. Disney is just a hyperreal placed above another hyperreal.

excellent essay dude

This is very, very good!

Great video. Sims this up pretty well

Knowing nothing is the new peace

Wonderful video. Thank you.

Amazing work

And, Nancy reminded us that we never have had direct access to any reality, 🤗, Latour, that we have not stopped fretting about this lack, which is in fact merely a condition for living in 🥰

Fantastic, beautiful. I love your videos!

Just found out about this guy. And holy shit, my mind feels amazing thinking about his philosophy.

Bit of an aside but the way you explain exchange value and commodity fetishism was extremely clear and concise.

Wicked analysis man

Well done!

Good video. Strong Adam Curtis vibes.

this was amazing. thank you

Impressive video!

Great video.

Great video. Thanks!