"Survivor", "Reality" TV and the SSA of Monopoly Capitalism

["Craven, Jim" <jcraven@xxxxxxxxx>]

Part of what David Gordon was getting at, with his work on the Social
Structures of Accumulation (SSA) of Monopoly Capitalism and Imperialism was
the fact that ripening old/emerging new conditions, constraints and
contradictions of monopoly capitalism and imperialism require adjustments
and new "innovations" in the basic dimensions of superstructures and
dominant ideologies--legal, cultural, social, psychological, political,
economic, media, religion, etc--as well as in fundamental power
relations/structures in order to further expanded reproduction of the whole
system itself. This is especially the case when the system has been run on
the illusions of bourgeois "democracy", the velvet glove hiding the iron
fist, and hiding the reality of Stalin's maxim--"Those who vote decide
nothing; those who count the votes decide everything."

These "reality" TV shows on the one hand are highly contrived and
manipulated, in some respects having nothing to do with the "realities" of
most everyday folks, yet on the other hand, they are aptly named as they
develop, incorporate, manipulate, expose, and even celebrate, some of the
supposed "instincts" and core drives of methodological individualism
summarily assumed to be--and celebrated as--"human nature" and essential to
the functioning and expanded reproduction of capitalism as a system:
narcissism; rat-race individualism; unprincipled and temporary
alliances--and only for convenience; "T & A"; misogyny; consumerism;
materialism; acquisitiveness; Machiavellianism; racism; homophobia;
get-rich-quick with little sacrifice; unbridled competition; situational
ethics; Lord-of-the Flies-type social Darwinism; "Barbie-girl" women as
ornaments of rich males; scoring rich males as the ultimate raison d'etre of
females; intrigue; irresponsible sexuality; pleasure/enhanced "self-esteem"
from the misery/low "self-esteem" of others; and so on.

In the case of "Survivor" there is a twist not found in the other shows like
Meet My Folks, Meet My Mom, The Batchelor, The Batchlorette, Joe
Millionaire, Fear Factor, The Mole, Married by America etc: outright
celebration and promotion of genocide. In "Survivor", Amazon, they started
out with "Tribes" (given exotic Indigenous-sounding names) wearing regalia
appearing to be like Indigenous regalia and clothing, all women versus all
men; the women were continually kicking the asses of the men especially in
challenges requiring physical strength and endurance. Then the "Tribes" are
renamed with two opposing "Tribes" made up of both men and women in each
"Tribe". Each time they are given two types of challenges: a) an event,
usually involving humiliation, physical challenges, mental challenges, etc
to score special goodies not usually available as the particpants are
supposed to work together to live with basic materials and foods
available--beer, cookies, fruits, spices, special trips, soda etc; b) the
second challenge is for "immunity" from being "voted out" as whatever
"Tribe" wins, the other "Tribe" has to vote one of "their own" out while the
"Tribe" winning "immunity" gets to kick-back. The object is for one "Tribe"
to exterminate the other by winning immunity challenges forcing the other
"Tribe" to keep voting its members out of the game until, on day 19, those
remaining in the decimated
"Tribe" with insufficient numbers to continue, are "merged" (read
assimilated) to form one whole "new Tribe".

In the "new Tribe", former opponents of the "old Tribe" are supposed to get
over previous battles and alliances, form new alliances and settle in for
the new arrangements, institutions, customs and power-relations of the new
"Tribe" which they collectively "name." Then the social Darwinism, always
present, is taken to a new level with old opponents now in new alliances and
old alliances broken down into new opponents.

I plan to use some of it my classes to explore some of the above-mentioned
concepts and dimensions of capitalism.

Jim C.

James M. Craven
Blackfoot Name: Omahkohkiaayo-i'poyii
Professor/Consultant,Economics;Business Division Chair
Clark College, 1800 E. McLoughlin Blvd.
Vancouver, WA. USA 98663
Tel: (360) 992-2283; Fax: (360) 992-2863
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~blkfoot5
Employer has no association with private/protected opinion
"Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present
controls the past." (George Orwell)
"...every anticipation of results which are first to be proved seems
disturbing to me...(Karl Marx, "Grundrisse")

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