Anabel's E-learning and Digital Cultures site » digital culture http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld part of the MSc in E-learning at the University of Edinburgh Sun, 07 Apr 2013 17:56:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 Week 1 Summary http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/2013/01/17/week-1-summary/ http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/2013/01/17/week-1-summary/#comments Thu, 17 Jan 2013 21:11:33 +0000 Anabel Drought http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/?p=49 SO far……….

I have been focusing on the idea of Utopian and Dystopian societies through film. Having recently watched Hunger games – a fantastic representation of a Dystopian society. Pitching people against themselves, with an outside agency controlling the situation to make better entertainment.

There are many films which represent dystopia, and it is usually control by society on the individual and the fight the individual has against it. It is a very popular genre of film, and focuses on what is real and what is unreal. The usual outcome is nature overcomes everything.

I began to think about films which represented a Utopian society, this is more difficult……………..
It appears that Utopia for some is dystopia for others, and the representation of a Utopia come from an escape from a Dystopian reality.

How does this relate to digital culture?

Well many of the Dystopian films are based in the future and rely heavily on the addition of “Technology” to represent the future. They show an inevitability of what will happen when people have power and control that is separated from actual real world real self interactions. There is an implication that people want to break free or find the real or replicate the real rather than an enjoyment of the being – suppose it wouldn’t be a very good film if everyone was happy and went about their daily lives incorporating technology to support them in their day to day!

]]> http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/2013/01/17/week-1-summary/feed/ 0 What is culture? http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/2013/01/15/anabel-drought-edin_ana-on-twitter/ http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/2013/01/15/anabel-drought-edin_ana-on-twitter/#comments Tue, 15 Jan 2013 19:34:58 +0000 Anabel Drought http://edc13.education.ed.ac.uk/anabeld/?p=18 Culture is hard to define and pin point, it means different things to different people
Someone described New Zealand as lacking culture? What did they actually mean by that? Is their idea of culture different to mine? Do the New Zealanders think they lack culture?
The dictionary definition recognises 5 different results:
1. the quality in a person or society that arises from a concern for what is regarded as excellent in arts, letters, manners, scholarly pursuits, etc.
2. that which is excellent in the arts, manners, etc.
3. a particular form or stage of civilization, as that of a certain nation or period: Greek culture.
4. development or improvement of the mind by education or training.
5. the behaviors and beliefs characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group: the youth culture; the drug culture.
What is culture for one person is not for another, it varies over time and space.
Digital culture is not only to do with all things technology, but also brings together different perceptions and beliefs of what culture is.
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