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I've been puzzling about this for a long time, and a discussion on Ufology (Can you speak Venusian?) brought it back to the forefront in my mind - I'd started to research this some while ago, and now my interest is piqued again.
Basically, are there images and symbols that are instinctively preloaded into our minds, and thus trigger an autonomic reponse? This has tangentially appeared in various threads on various fora on here, for example I brought it up on Violence in Media: Urban Myth?
Now, in Ufology, I know many people who find the "grey" image, for example on the cover of Communion -
- unsettling, or spell-binding, or indeed both at a very deep level, almost as if it were instinctive. As we were discussing the nature of the abduction motif on the speaking Venusian thread, and how for centuries similar phenomena have been reported but assigned different explanations (faeries, night-hags, and latterly Zeta-Reticulans), perhaps that image (or something similar) has in some way always been with us, deep in our sub-conscious.
Another instance I remember is the three points of light on flying triangles: I've seen children very deliberately dabbing paint in exactly that pattern: an isoceles triangle with a short base, forming an elongated delta, as well as vaguely remembering Aboriginal art with the same pattern, (I think) Mayan, ditto Vedic.
I haven't got any strong opinion on why these particular images should have any resonance, or indeed if it's just the way I'm looking at things, but certainly I think there's a mechanism, perhaps allied to instinct and maybe seated in the primitive brain, which for some reason triggers a reaction on a level lower than the conscious one. Is it purely coincidence, or is there a reason they seem to be imprinted - and if so, why?
Now - what does anyone else think? Are there any images, rituals, sounds, anything else that seem to bypass your normal level of awareness and go much much deeper?
Alternatively, is this a real effect, but is it merely cultural osmosis - like when you whistle a tune you've never consciously listened to, but has been on in the background for weeks?
I've attached a poll for a snapshot of opinion, but I'd like to hear from as many people as possible. When I've concluded th research, I'll let you all know what I conclude: I'm not going in with pre-conclusions, merely an approximate opinion .
Basically, are there images and symbols that are instinctively preloaded into our minds, and thus trigger an autonomic reponse? This has tangentially appeared in various threads on various fora on here, for example I brought it up on Violence in Media: Urban Myth?
(That thread soon swerved off into a discussion of censorship, but you get the gist).stuneville said:I've been wondering for a long time whether it's not so much the programmes themselves, but (unconcious) evocation of archetypes portrayed in them.
To explain: The Third Reich used deliberate re-creations of ritual evocations of Mars, the Bringer of War, in it's rallies, which definitely stirred feelings of aggression within anyone who witnessed them. Conversely, Janis Joplin on stage used to (apparently unconciously - discuss) perform a ritual evocation of Venus: despite not being that obviously attractive she could whip the audience into a sexual frenzy (and I know someone who did see her live, and he confirmed she was utterly spellbinding).
Now to extend this premise: what if elements of these rituals were unconciously incorporated into TV shows and films? Pre-supposing that all humans do subconciously respond to archetypes (and there's an excellent article on Jung in FT171), then surely this could go some way to explain why some, visual, media can apparently trigger extreme responses, whereas others with a similar theme do not (and books almost never).
Now, in Ufology, I know many people who find the "grey" image, for example on the cover of Communion -
- unsettling, or spell-binding, or indeed both at a very deep level, almost as if it were instinctive. As we were discussing the nature of the abduction motif on the speaking Venusian thread, and how for centuries similar phenomena have been reported but assigned different explanations (faeries, night-hags, and latterly Zeta-Reticulans), perhaps that image (or something similar) has in some way always been with us, deep in our sub-conscious.
Another instance I remember is the three points of light on flying triangles: I've seen children very deliberately dabbing paint in exactly that pattern: an isoceles triangle with a short base, forming an elongated delta, as well as vaguely remembering Aboriginal art with the same pattern, (I think) Mayan, ditto Vedic.
I haven't got any strong opinion on why these particular images should have any resonance, or indeed if it's just the way I'm looking at things, but certainly I think there's a mechanism, perhaps allied to instinct and maybe seated in the primitive brain, which for some reason triggers a reaction on a level lower than the conscious one. Is it purely coincidence, or is there a reason they seem to be imprinted - and if so, why?
Now - what does anyone else think? Are there any images, rituals, sounds, anything else that seem to bypass your normal level of awareness and go much much deeper?
Alternatively, is this a real effect, but is it merely cultural osmosis - like when you whistle a tune you've never consciously listened to, but has been on in the background for weeks?
I've attached a poll for a snapshot of opinion, but I'd like to hear from as many people as possible. When I've concluded th research, I'll let you all know what I conclude: I'm not going in with pre-conclusions, merely an approximate opinion .
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