The Symbolic Society In The Ken Of Consumption And Media

The 20th century was a period of rapid development of science and technology. Consumption plays an increasingly important role in people’s life, which with the development of media industry dominated by technology, changed the traditional way of life and cognitive style. However, the prevalence of consumerism and the development of the media, bring huge benefits for social progress and human life as well as society spiritual crisis, which has bad influence on people’s behavior, thoughts, psychology and emotion. Rich articles and numerous media provide convenience and enjoyment for people, so they become dependent on which in turn control the human consciousness and behavior. This has led to the dissimilation of consumption psychology, people’s emotions become indifference, numbness, emptiness, anxiety, lost beliefs and spiritual pursuit of freedom, Finally fall into serious spiritual crisis. The American author Don Delillo is known as the irony of postmodern culture. His creation which focuses on the society and life in the United States of postindustrial age, involved in a variety of social and cultural phenomenon, constructed a postmodern cultural landscape of the United States for the reader. He particularly concerned with, the consumption and the media in American contemporary culture, and put the influence of mass media and consumer culture, the development of science and technology and ideology on people’s behavior, thought, the psychological and emotion as an important theme of creation.This dissertation takes DeLillo’s late novels White Noise, Underworld, Mao II, The Body Artist, and The Point Omega as the research object, using Baudrillard and Debord’s postmodern theory to analysis the spiritual crisis in post-modern society under the influence of consumption and media. Thesis consists of three parts, an introduction, body and conclusion. The introduction points out the background, research status at home and abroad on this subject, and the significance of this thesis. Chapter one introduces Don Delillo and his works which reflect the status quo of the post-modern society, generally generalize the influence of postmodern consumption culture and media culture on human. Chapter two take DeLillo’s novel White Noise as the object of study to analysis the influence of consumer society on the psychological with Baudrillard’s consumer society theory, mainly includes the symbolic of things in consumer society led to the loss of overall significance, and people’s psychological alienation under the control of symbol. Chapter three take novel Underworld and white noise as the research object, using Debord’s media theory and Baudrillard’s postmodern social theory to analysis the influence of symbolic social media and consumption on human emotion and reason, including human fear, trauma and anxiety caused by high-tech, the control of human consciousness by advertising information bombing and video media. Chapter four take novel The Angel Esmeralda: Nine Stories and Mao II as the object, using Baudrillard’s simulacra theory to analysis the impact of surreal symbol society brought by electronic media on human belief and freedom spirit, including belief crisis in the simulacra world, the lack of artistic freedom spirit, and further analysis of the spiritual construction under the postmodern society status quo of the spirit crisis. Conclusion part summarizes the human spirit crisis under the influence of postmodern consumption and media, and point out the response and pursuit to the human spirit crisis in the post-modern society.Through the analysis, the dissertation concludes that in the modern society, consumption and media culture bring abundant material and enjoyment for human life as well as serious mental crisis. It also provides enlightenment for the development of contemporary Chinese cultural through the study of DeLillo’s cultural criticism of American society.