Teaching postmodernism and Baudrillard to A-level students earlier this week, I was struggling to think of any application of the ideas which might be easier to grasp than "the gulf war did not take place".
I began to think of the current election in Ireland as a form of hyperreality; a reference with no referent. The promises made by each party appear more real than any form of reality itself. The loss of economic sovereignty to global institutions has reduced the act of voting to an entirely symbolic act.
Just as we no longer consume to meet actual needs, the Irish electorate is not voting to effect actual change. Instead, it is producing an image of itself and entering into a conversation with other peoples.
It seems the opening line of this conversation will be, "we're fed up with this lot, we're going to give the other lot a chance".
More importantly, this recording of rites of spring turned up on the internet recently. They truly were a great band. Drink deep.
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