Walter Benjamin: The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

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This is amazing! The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction is a very long and dense article. Your interpretation was super clear :)) it really helped me out

I am a cemetery monument engraver enthralled with the hand carved memorials of centuries past. I own a private studio, fully equipped with all the modern tools used to carve stone, yet I somehow resist the persuasion to create memorials based on today's "cookie-cutter", commodified philosophy. As a society of craftspeople and artisans, we have more than enough tools needed to creatively express the individuality of a person's last tribute, yet what is lacking is the willingness to embrace the examples left to us by generations of memorialists who have paved the way. I find it rather strange that, centuries ago, people of very meager and modest financial means literally have more elegant memorials, than do the well-to-do of our present age. How and why is this? I long for the answer, and perhaps will find clues in the writings of Walter Benjamin. Thank you for providing this video. I appreciate it greatly.

Great summary. It's a pretty long article. This is very nice and summarised. The stock footage and music and animation really makes Walter Benjamin's article comes alive.

Just discovered the channel and subscribed, never stop spreading knowledge

This was well done. As a hearing impaired person I'd love it if you'd be able to upload subtitles too.

As someone has already posted: your channel is what The School of Life should be.Keep up the good work!

I like that this meditation on Benjamin's essay reveals a bit of his own indebtedness to an understanding of art that was itself of a time and place. Rituals and cults are, in fact, political. What we have then is an entire transformation of our ideological systems across a broad range of such systems. Benjamin's essay is right in sensing that something has changed, is changing, without yet necessarily being able to understand what the ramifications are.

Really fantastic video! I studied this at university and didn't really get it. 10 minutes on YouTube and I understand. I was blind and now I can see.

Beautifully done!!! It's amazing how alike we think. All these topics are of profound importance and interest to me, but ... I can't find the proper way of communicating them to other people.

Damn, I'd written a similar paper on the conception / function of art - except that was with regards to the digital / internet revolution. I'd never read this essay, and now I can't help but think how similar were our thoughts, and how pleased Benjamin would be in the 21st century

I think that Walter Benjamin would love memes

I just wrote more than a few essays about Walter Benjamin and I love love love this video! SUBSCRIBED!

Excellent video! It's Davis Douglas btw... :)

Easily one of the most important essays of all time

Thank U for sharing this great work.

Actually, some 80+ people flew across the Atlantic before Lindbergh -- he wasn't even the first solo pilot. Well done video, however, with lots of wonderful visuals behind the solid thinking. Perfect score as well. Very nice. Congratulations.

Great video as always. Just wanted to point out that "The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction" was written by Douglas Davis, not David Douglas ;)

It's frightening how similar my recommended videos look to the ones at 7:20.

Excellent video, thank you.