Simulacra

The notion of the simulacra has become a prominent concept in a postmodern digitalized culture as the question of representing reality has become more and more of a contested zone; the belief that a sign can refer to and be exchanged for guaranteed meaning has been challenged. However, the notion of the simulacrum is an historical phenomenon predating our contemporary society, always centering its concerns in the efficacy of the image. Stemming from the Latin root simulare, “to make like, to put on an appearance of,” simulacra raise the worth of the copy in relation to the original. An image, having internalized its own repetition, begins to question the authority and legitimacy of the original model. In a social order where the reproduction of images and goods has become a standard economic practice, the meaning of simulacra has become crucial when questions emerge concerning the identity ofwhat is and is notthe genuine article, like the knockoff designer goods sold in various parts of Asia.

Two versions of the concept of simulacra have emerged in postmodernity: one negativethat of Jean Baudrillardand the other positivethat of Giles Deleuze. Both rethink Plato's initial denouncement of copies as simply deceptive idols that are nothing more than false semblances. The relationship between copy and original for Plato is merely an external relation of similitude, rather than one of intrinsic and essential resemblance as would be the case of Siamese twins for instance. This later relationship is also theorized by Plato as a good copy, an icon that does participate in the idea of the original. Each twin, for instance, could iconically participate in the ideal form of man or woman. In contrast, a bad copy can be illustrated in Pliny's account of the battle between the master painters Parrhasius and Zeuxis to capture the realness of life on canvas. The grapes that Zeuxis paints are indeed “real” and are pecked at by birds. However, they have no taste and bear only an external appearance. They do not participate in the original idea of “grape-ness.” This entry explores the Baudriallardian simulacra and the Deleuzian simulacra in turn.