Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Freud analysis of the "Jennicam"

The pleasurable expectations of the “Jennicam” rely on the scopophilic instinct, which Freud defined as looking at another person as an erotic object. Scopophilia can be directed in two areas: first, voyeurism, that is scopophilic pleasure linked to sexual attraction, and, second, narcissism, that is scopophilic pleasure linked to identification with the ego ideal. Freud claims that voyeuristic tendencies arise from an irrepressible desire to uncover and explore the private and forbidden. Part of the pleasure derived from voyeurism stems from watching people who are not aware they are being watched. Although Jenni installed the camera in her own room, and was clearly aware of the viewer, she admitted that she did not know when a picture was taken. She did not purposefully change her behavior or censor any material. My question is, did she ever really forget that she was being filmed/being watched? Or is it something that was always at the back of her mind? Does this change the way we examine the footage? For example, the "Real World" is clearly edited for the purposes of entertainment. Did Jenni think twice before entering her room?

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