Baudrillard sounds like a nut when he says that we are now living in a hyperreal world, a virtual world. But there is certainly something to it. We’re still physical creatures, of course, surrounded by physical objects, and that doesn’t change when we get strapped in for some virtual experience. But when we glance in other directions, say at social relations, hyperreality becomes more plausible. Don’t we know people who, through various media, know more about celebrities than they know about their spouses? Aren’t there people whose closest - that is, warmest, most intimate - personal connections are to characters in TV and film than to living neighbors? Don’t “social” events, which once involved mainly conversation, games, eating together, today often become common participation in entertainment - games, a DVD, a movie? And isn’t all that a little bit like living in hyperreality?
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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