CC BY
60
UDC 101
PROCESSES OF DEHUMANIZATION IN MODERN CULTURE
L. Babakhova
Don state technical university. Rostov-on-Don, Russian Federation science-almanac@mail. ru
Social situation, characterizing the modern culture, is connected with public conscience redirecting from collectivism ideals to the ideas of liberal individualism that points to the fundamental transformation of human existing conditions. Degradation of fundamental axiological orienting points, comprising a person world view basis, spread of hedonistic consumption ideals in the society, fund the processes of dehumanization, connected with social estrangement of an individual.
Confirmation of social ideals deprivation feeling in mass consciousness contributes to growth of moral relativism. Orientation to the permissiveness principle in the pursuit for comfort of an individual being and satisfaction ob-tainment, unhumanizely influence to a person, distorting its spiritual structure. Axiological world transformation of an individual, disappearance of universal world view basis, find its reflection in dehumanization of a person activity that manifests in tendency to spiritual values rejection in favor of material requirements contentment.
Consumer-utilitarian relation to the world, determination to welfare possession, allows speaking about processes of person dehumanization, connected with a confirmation of hedonistic consumption ideals in the modern culture. Propaganda of material welfare ideals and unrestrained consumption, inevitably entail simplification and impoverishment of an individual spiritual culture, directing him only to individualize demands contentment. Models and behavior samples, offered by mass media, contribute to formation of a "qualified" consumer, concerned with searching of individual life quality. Social ideals depreciation of collectivism, brotherhood, patriotism, self-sacrifice for the sake of "common business", unhumanizes human activity, restricting it to the moments of consumption and using, denying supraindividual aims and values. Vital activity, aimed to contentment of only individual demands, without orientation to panhuman meanings and values, does not contradict with common norms, but leads to estrangement and deprivation of a person emotional connection with the world and other people.
Spiritual structure simplification, suppression of a genuine human entity, dominance of remote communication forms broadly define the modern face. Dehumanization is characterized by estrangement processes increase of person spiritual values, discontinuity of deep social connections, in the result of which an individual feels strange in relation with other people, founding his interaction exceptionally on the functional basis. Thus, dehumanization processes, observing in the modern culture, are accompanied by relativization of moral bases. Public conscience redirecting from moral values, collectively significant aims of a human life to individualist ideals of the consumption epoch, contributes to estrangement increment and leads a person to the state of perplexity, feeling of "inauthenticity" of his existence.
Key words: culture, modernity, dehumanization, social consciousness, spirituality, moral grounds.
Social situation, characterizing the modern culture, is connected with public conscience redirecting from collectivism ideals to the ideas of liberal individualism that points to the fundamental transformation of human existing conditions. Degradation of fundamental axiological orienting points, comprising a person world view basis, spread of hedonistic consumption ideals in the society, fund the processes of dehumanization, connected with social estrangement of an individual. Confirmation of social ideals deprivation feeling in mass consciousness contributes to growth of moral relativism. Orientation to the permissiveness principle in the pursuit for comfort of an individual being and satisfaction obtainment, unhumanizely influence to a person, distorting its spiritual structure.
Axiological world transformation of an individual, disappearance of universal world view basis, find its reflection in dehumanization of a person activity that manifests in tendency to spiritual values rejection in favor of material requirements contentment. Social ideals depreciation of collectivism, brotherhood, patriotism, self-sacrifice for the sake of "common business", unhumaniz-es human activity, restricting it to the moments of consumption and using, denying supraindividual aims and values. Vital activity, aimed to contentment of only individual demands, without orientation to panhuman meanings and values, does not contradict with common norms, but leads to estrangement and deprivation of a person emotional connection with the world and other people. Spiritual structure simplification, suppression of a genuine human entity, dominance of remote communication forms broadly define the modern face. Dehumanization is characterized by estrange-
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ment processes increase of person spiritual values, discontinuity of deep social connections, in the result of which an individual feels strange in relation with other people, founding his interaction exceptionally on the functional basis.
Pressure of social and individual time take place in the modern society, every person wants to live in the present time, without thinking about the next day. The modern world - is a world of young people. Youth personifies life, readiness to activity, as an expression of the highest vitality, "where a person has only the one function value, he should be young; if he is already not young, he will strive to seem a young man" [5, p. 309]. The idea about own life is fragmented and fallen to separate moments, which are fixed in the memory as a sequence of decision making, whereas age significances lose their meaning. Age absence opens in front of a person a horizon of various possibilities, every of which possesses an equal significance degree. Fragmentation leads to superficial reality perception, events succession is rolled in the consciousness of a person as a film, after it is forgotten. Nothing can be contained for a long time. An individual joins to dictated perception of reality, uncritical judgements and estimations under the mass production industry pressure, confirmations of the carnal amusements ideals. A person turns into a passive consumer of suggested industry, as if observing occurrent events from outside.
Visual, sensual overpower under intellectual, weakening the ability of an individual judgement. All-pervading generation of the new, constant change of scene, superficial glance feelings, ideas, and human consciousness following these streams, contribute to production o superficial glance to the world, which slides from one fragment to the other and requires constant renewal. Casual attitude to the world, other people, to oneself, excludes the deepness, and the acquired information reminds a kaleidoscope picture, which will never be completely comprehended. Exteriority never better manifests in the modern art, which implies nondurable values, appealed to entertain and please. The modern art should move with the times, constantly renovate, change from one style to the other one, in order to not to lose its entertaining value.
The characteristic feature of our time - is a disease of novelty. Without novelty, constant renewal, everything loses its attractiveness. The modern art is constrained to constantly renovate in accordance with market needs, in order to not lose its entertaining ability. The same themes become interesting, banal and cease exciting a consumer. That is why searching for something unusual, sensational, mindbending of its novelty and nontriviality begins. There appeal to all middling, pathologic, antisocial takes places "all and everything - from God to Satan is derided and abased" [3, p.456]. Propaganda of material welfare ideals and unrestrained consumption, inevitably entail simplification and impoverishment of an individual spiritual culture, directing him only to individualize demands contentment. Models and behavior samples, offered by mass media, contribute to formation of a "qualified" consumer, concerned with searching of individual life quality. Constant searching for life quality, selfishness, self-actualization and self-determination, responsibility loosing in front of society - determine the modern culture features.
Reality, created by a person, induces traditional values depreciation in its consciousness. Various opinions, different tastes and behavior models can coexist in the given society, without disagreements inducing, as an individual, born by this society, as a rule, is self-centred and essentially indifferent to the rest. Consumer-utilitarian relation to the world, determination to welfare possession, allows speaking about processes of person dehumanization, connected with a confirmation of hedonistic consumption ideals in the modern culture. "All consumption ideology wants to make us believe, that we entered the new era and that decisive humane "Revolution" separates heroic and cruel Era of Production from the euphoric Consumption Epoch, where, finally, a person and his desires obtained rights" [2, p. 112]. Traditions and customs are relegated to the background, giving a place to obtainment of the material comfort, released from ideals and high aims. Essential social alterations, leading to individual spiritual values estrangement, are conditioned by consumption process influence. Acquiring an intended by consumer ideology model of personal self-identification, an individual becomes a "consuming person". Consumption acquires a status of person socialization, determining his mode of life and appetencies, forming axiological orientations and motivations of individuals.
Transformation of a person life, whom a consumer role is imputed, occurs under the influence of mass propaganda of individualize demands contentment. A person begins to identify himself with the things he has, but not with the things he creates. Person status begins to be identified through the realizing possibility of these or those consumer actions: purchase of goods and services. Production and maintenance of goods and services by mass consumption economic system relies on the principle of immediate desires contentment. The idea of demands unhampered contentment became possible thanks to credit system development. If earlier one should first of all accumulate some money to acquire this or that goods, then today this operation can be realized on credit, which creates access to abundance. A person is in so called purchases circulation, finally appearing to be incapable to lay aside desires contentment. Paying credit an individual is ready to the new purchase of improved model no matter what. The principle of immediate desires contentment leads to destruction of a person. Human personality turns into the complex of desires and the process to their contentment. A person appears to be in constant concern to satisfy his desires, which are artificially created and aimed by economic mechanism.
The consumption process does a pleasure to a person, "commodities, landmarks, foodstuff, beverages, cigarettes, people, lections, books, films - everything is consumed, everything is "en-gluted". The world is one large object of our desires, a huge apple, big breast; and we are sucking children, appearing to be in a constant expectation, full of hope, and chronically disappointed" [4]. Consumer attitude to the world orients a person to a constant pursuit for pleasure and profit obtain-ment. A person is involved to the exchange process of one welfares to the others for demonstration of his success and status. He achieves recognition in the eyes of surrounding people by means of alternation and possession ability of certain welfare (car, mobile phone, and resting place). However some demands and pleasures, for which a person pursues, practically, are appeared to be artificially constructed, remote. Quasi needs - is an incomplete substitute, replicated by consumer culture. An individual as a rule does not guess about inauthenticity of imposed appetences. With the help of commercial, marketing a consumer loses power to decide by himself. A consumer does not already control his demands and does not module them, "commercial realizes a miracle of significant consumption increasing, pursuing the aim not to add , but deprive the goods of consumption value, deprive their time value, subordinating the fashion values and accelerated renewal" [2, p.71].
Plurality of made goods and services in the society generates appearance of pseudo values, which are derivatives of mass media and etc. As Z. Bauman notices, there "ever-widening spectrum of "pastime substitute" appears, pointing to the transition from significant things, existing beyond the person influence sphere, to the less significant or completely not denoting anything" [1, p.189]. Dehumanization manifests in the deprivation of person's genuine face, identity becomes extremely unstable. Constant alteration of one prescribed image to the other, one more attractive takes place in a corresponding situation. Identifying oneself with remote, artificially created image, a person commits strange for him acts, characterized for this or that accepted by him style orientation "fundamental unconscious automatic choice of a consumer is consisted in life style acceptance of special society (it means this is not a choice anymore! - thus the theory of autonomy and consumer sovereignty is disproved)" [2, p. 98].
In conclusion one wants to notice that an endless chase for remote quasi needs contentment, quick alteration of ideals and values leads to dehumanization and destruction of a person. Demotivation of aspirations to the general business, ethics of hedonism and permissiveness contribute to subdivision and detachment of individuals. From one side, a person independently chooses necessary, from his point of view, behavior model, meeting the demands of this or that situation. He obtains a right to independently form his axiologically-world view system. Unlimited selection of various possibilities opens in front of an individual for his life space construction. However, from the other side - the life space itself becomes blurred, deprived of clear orienting points, formerly contributed to the process of an individual identity self-construction. Absence of stable ideals, deprivation of prescribed social role, life unpredictability, make a person constantly construct his individuality. "Deprivation of a distinct place in the society now becomes to be an experience, which can repeat a lot of times in the life of every person, whereas just a few, and even none of the possible
statuses, appear to be rather sound, to speak about long existence in them" [1, p.184]. Thus, dehu-manization processes, observing in the modern culture, are accompanied by relativization of moral bases. Public conscience redirecting from moral values, collectively significant aims of a human life to individualist ideals of the consumption epoch, contributes to estrangement increment and leads a person to the state of perplexity, feeling of "inauthenticity" of his existence.
References
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Литература
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8. Nesmeyanov E.E., Olenich T.S., Plotnikov S.A. "Youth and Orthodox" within the context of traditional culture values formation (on the base of social research "Attitude of Rostov Region youth to Russian Orthodox Church and the believers in the context of the support of traditional culture values") // Научный альманах стран Причерноморья. 2016. № 1. .http://science-almanac.ru
September, 14, 2016
