Reading 1: Debord

In the essay, “Methods of Detournement,” Debord discusses different methods of reusing elements of past works. Although the essay was written in 1956, the material seems strikingly applicable in today’s culture. There are obvious indications of detournement in today’s music, literature, film, dance, architecture, clothing, and language. Phrases in songs, Shakespearean references and retro clothing all contain a level of detournement that we live in every day. Detournement changes the way the past is viewed while creating a unique work of its own. I enjoyed Debord’s reference to clothing and his idea of “disguise closely linked to play.” We see this in the revival of the 80’s style of clothing seen in today’s fashion world. Back in the 80’s, the clothing was seen as ordinary and everyday. By reviving the 80’s and putting a contemporary twist to the clothing, the current fashions are worn not for respect and reverence, but rather to smile at the ridiculousness of the style back then. The fashions are fun and playful; worn to create a different message than originally intended in the 1980’s.
I enjoyed Debord’s reference of the slogan “Plagiarism is necessary, progress implies it.” Like Debord, I agree that the process of growth and forward momentum requires using already established work as a spring board. In all areas of study, one looks at the techniques and styles of masters before them in order to generate new ideas. When I first began my studies of landscape architecture, I was initially asked to duplicate and analyze numerous existing works. Later, I was asked to reuse elements of those existing works in my own design. Since the human mind delights in familiarity, the design was aesthetically entertaining for my fellow landscape architecture students. It was not so entertaining, however, for the rest of the world who is not as knowledgeable on the classic gardens and early landscapes. This leads me to believe that detournement as a style in today’s popular culture encourages education.
An exaggerated example of detournement in today’s popular culture that encourages education is the film “Scary Movie.” This movie mocks the techniques that directors use to give a film its frightening feel. According to Wikipedia, detournement is when “images produced by the spectacle get altered so that rather than supporting the status quo, their meaning gets changed in order to put across a more radical or oppositional message.” With the mockery in “Scary Movie” the images of scary scenes in movies change their meaning to put off an oppositional message in the form of humor. The previously viewed horror film is broken down to the point where viewers laugh at it. If the viewer is not familiar with the references to other works throughout the movie, the humor is lost. In order to effectively enjoy “Scary Movie” the viewer must be educated in the other films involved. This movie has been such a hit that several other have sprung off of this same idea including, “Not another Teen Movie” and “Epic Movie.” Although this is a poor example of the craft of detournement, it relays the point that in order to understand a work involving detournement to the fullest depth, one must be educated in the world around them. No one wants to be in the awkward situation of not getting a joke. In this way, detournement encourages education.