Well, school madness has yet to abate for me - but i think after tomorrow, things should feel a little less stressful. Tomorrow afternoon is the presentation I've been dreading for about a month... a 60-75 minutes one on one debate regarding the merits of Northrop Frye's communication theories. Its a pretty hot topic... though it may be a little too far removed from my life to argue passionately about. That having been said though, I've been preparing for a few weeks now - I dont have any arguments yet but my scope of Northrop frye-ness has increased steadily .
OK, so I'm writing this blog for two reasons a) as procrastination related time spending and b) as a creative way to get out some of my "NF-dog" ideas. Hey, perhaps you all might learn a little something something in the process as well... What follows is a little introduction to what our Canadian friend Frye is all about (most of this information comes from the book Canadian Commuication Though by Babe... there is some original Frye in there as well) - Enjoy! I know I will...
Frye's communication theories can best be understood by recognizing that they mostly stem from a broade ontological dialectic of subjective vs objective reality; a mythopoeic reality vs. a scientific one. It is clear in the way that Fryes osselates between the two perceptions throughout his career that this is a dialectic between two very fundamental worldviews. Frye felt that people generally accept or dwell on one of those two cosmologies:Okay, so that's where I'm at now. Any thoughts on Frye thus far? I suppose I have many miles to go before I sleep. But I mean that in a metaphorical way - I plan to physically go to sleep very soon and get up at 6am. Ohh baby. Cant wait!
The objectivist universe is one that exists independently of the mind: it is one to be observed and studied. Such a reality gives humans a very passive role in the general scheme of things. Frye was adament that a scientific and objectivitist reality points starkly to a universe devoid of meaning.
The subjective world view puts humans in the center. According to this, reality is a product of the human mind - every experience, every observation must be interpreted by the mind. Therefore all perception is a mental function and as such is subjective. Within this vision of reality is Frye's "mythopoeic" world view: this links perception, imagination, will, experience knowledge and truth.
From here, I want to dig deeper into this dialectic by moving on to Frye's "myth of Freedom" and its antithesis the "myth of concern".
The myth of Freedom derives from objectivist reality. The "freedom" here is the freedom deriving from the authority of impersonal evidence, production, observation and verification and logic. It includes social values such as objectivity, judgement, tolerance and respect for the individual - Frye writes that this value system and outlook engendered political and philosophical liberalism. He calls it a myth because it is a set of values and beliefs in a universe without any higher intelligence that our own.
Anyways, sorry for the rather sporadic posts! But don't worry, I'm heading to Singapore roughly around the first of May, so I have many forthcoming adventures to ramble about
Until next time,
Keep it... frye?
-Andrewtown22
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