White Noise critique SUMMARY

The critique of White Noise, titled The (Super)marketplace of Images: Television as Unmediated Mediation in DeLillo’s White Noise, is written by John Duvall.  He is an English professor and author who looks at some of the contradictory aspects of White Noise, as well as the unnoticed similarities between the vast mediation in today’s society and Hitler’s fascist regime.  Even part of his title ‘Unmediated Mediation’ resounds the contradiction of how unpublicized the consequences of everything being so publicized on television is.  The false belief of those in the story that only things that are mediated on television are important contradicts the importance of the toxic spill just because it isn’t on television news.  The fact that Jack doesn’t realize the similarity between Hitler’s fascism and modern mediation is another of his examples of backwards-ness in this book. False auras of reality and the power of suggestion, especially through television, is a big point that Duvall makes.  For example how Jack lets shopping become his relief, and how Murray slyly develops his motives through seduction/suggestion.  Duvall’s critique basically brings attention to the many subliminal/mediated/manipulative situations the characters, especially Jack, in White Noise unknowingly experience.

By reading this critique, I became a lot more aware of the similarities between how Jack fit into society and what Hitler wanted to accomplish through fascism.  Hitler wanted to tightly control his surroundings by any means necessary and modern television or mediation essentially does a very effective job of this; only in a sneakier, less in-your-face way than Hitler.  I think this is a bit of a stretch, but there is clearly some truth in the comparison.  Right now I am leaning towards using option #3 for our third essay, so this critique would go nicely with how extremely important language and words are.  Hitler and television both use language to get people to do exactly what they want.  Essentially turning language into power.

Duvall, John N. The (Super)Marketplace of Images: Television as Unmediated Mediation in DeLillo’s White Noise. White Noise. New York City: Penguin Group, 1998. 432-55. Print.