L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain

Postmodern Hollywood cinema has been characterized as a highly reflexive art, in which images refer to other images or to themselves—not to the world. As a result, theorists often come to the conclusion that Hollywood cinema no longer speaks about the real. This article counters this assumption by e...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Mathias Kusnierz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Association Française d'Etudes Américaines 2017-10-01
Series:Transatlantica
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/8330
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1832580638666915840
author Mathias Kusnierz
author_facet Mathias Kusnierz
author_sort Mathias Kusnierz
collection DOAJ
description Postmodern Hollywood cinema has been characterized as a highly reflexive art, in which images refer to other images or to themselves—not to the world. As a result, theorists often come to the conclusion that Hollywood cinema no longer speaks about the real. This article counters this assumption by examining the various ways in which images do act upon the real. Relying on Jonathan Beller’s “attention theory of value” and Peter Szendy’s concept of “iconomy,” this article proposes that reflexivity does impact the real, particularly through what we call iconomic energy. Iconomic energy circulates images with usury and thereby increases their ideological value. Once reflexivity has been recognized as a multiple and indirect way of impacting the real, Hollywood cinema emerges as an ideological instrument as much as a tool for emancipation.
format Article
id doaj-art-a58ef069d0e14cf0897ea4a444534395
institution Kabale University
issn 1765-2766
language English
publishDate 2017-10-01
publisher Association Française d'Etudes Américaines
record_format Article
series Transatlantica
spelling doaj-art-a58ef069d0e14cf0897ea4a4445343952025-01-30T10:46:12ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662017-10-01210.4000/transatlantica.8330L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporainMathias KusnierzPostmodern Hollywood cinema has been characterized as a highly reflexive art, in which images refer to other images or to themselves—not to the world. As a result, theorists often come to the conclusion that Hollywood cinema no longer speaks about the real. This article counters this assumption by examining the various ways in which images do act upon the real. Relying on Jonathan Beller’s “attention theory of value” and Peter Szendy’s concept of “iconomy,” this article proposes that reflexivity does impact the real, particularly through what we call iconomic energy. Iconomic energy circulates images with usury and thereby increases their ideological value. Once reflexivity has been recognized as a multiple and indirect way of impacting the real, Hollywood cinema emerges as an ideological instrument as much as a tool for emancipation.https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/8330ideologyHollywood cinemaIconomyiconomic energyvalueusury
spellingShingle Mathias Kusnierz
L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
Transatlantica
ideology
Hollywood cinema
Iconomy
iconomic energy
value
usury
title L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
title_full L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
title_fullStr L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
title_full_unstemmed L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
title_short L’usure iconique. Circulation et valeur des images dans le cinéma américain contemporain
title_sort l usure iconique circulation et valeur des images dans le cinema americain contemporain
topic ideology
Hollywood cinema
Iconomy
iconomic energy
value
usury
url https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/8330
work_keys_str_mv AT mathiaskusnierz lusureiconiquecirculationetvaleurdesimagesdanslecinemaamericaincontemporain