Reproduced Images

I think that the book, specifically, Walter Benjamin has a very interesting point when he talks about the fact that reproducing images leads to a political message. Benjamin wrote this in the time when fascism and Nazi propaganda were everywhere and this idea still holds true today (while it occurs on much smaller scales as well). When people take well-known images and rework them to create a new meaning they take what people already know about the original and play off of it. The key to this idea is that there must be some sort of prior shared knowledge of the image they are playing off of, in order for the viewer to see the connection, irony, or message. For example, the recent reports of Britney Spears shaving her head has spurred many reproductions of other famous bald images. There is one with a Mr. Clean reference and one with a Gollum (from LOTR), and not to mention the hundreds of past photos of her that have been photoshopped to have her bald head. These images, while both amateurly done and on a much less politcal statement than the AIDS posters and Hitler image in the book, are examples of how pop culture utilizes this idea. In the Mr. Clean reference, the image is entitled Ms. Crazy, referring to her behavior as of late, she is drawn with tattoos on her arms of such labels as Cheetos. These tattoos are referring to first the fact that she was getting a tattoo when she was first seen with her bald head but also as a sign of her "trailer park-ness." Images of cheetos also reinforces this idea, as her food of choice is normally some junk food (see second image). This image would not make sense to the viewer if they hadn't known of Mr Clean, the ubiquitous bald reference, or of Britney Spears' latest mishaps. While this example isn't exactly of the politics the book refers to, it shows how this idea of reproducing images whether to make fun of someone or to convey a message has become such a popular process today in response to different breaking news reports.