In this reading material, the author examines the voyeur as symbolic characters of the surveillance city state and analyzes the the social phenomena behind this by applying three films: Rear Window, Silver, and The End of Violence.
The way how the author relates the three films is impressive. Through windows, camera lens, or the screen, mysteries and entanglements were progressively unveiled. Desire for power, control, pleasure, and truth behind murders became the original enticement for surveillance.
I was intrigued by the concept “panopticon”, which the author introduces at the beginning of this chapter and is appeared several times when relating it to surveillance and control. The author draws an analogy between the panopticon and the surveillance systems in modernity, as their similar functions for a more peaceful world.
It is worth considering the social issues such as the gender characteristics and alienation under modern city as the author mentioned. Specifically, in our real life, the surveillance systems is comprehensive as the panopticon and it is hard to distinguish to what extend would be categorized as “privacy”.
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Good summary. Could you think of some real life example that illustrates the concept of panopticon?