Date of Award

5-1969

Document Type

Thesis

Department

English

First Reader

Professor Betty J. McCommas

Abstract

Probably the most exciting development in the fields of literature, art, music, and communications in the past twenty years is the mixed-media concept. The idea of using more than one artistic form in conjunction with others to produce a desired effect is not new, but only with the development of our modern electronic technology did this concept come to tremendously influenced the contemporary literary and musical world. More important, however, the development of new and hitherto undreamt of communications and transportation media has had a profound influence upon modern culture and civilization itself.

Marshall McLuhan, author of Understanding Media, defines a medium as simply "any extension of ourselves." The medium can be an extension of any part of a man, an extension of any of his senses. Binoculars, for example, are an extension of the eyes, just as a slide trombone is an extension of a person's voice; yet media are more than mere extensions of physical senses and have a far greater influence upon individuals and the society in which they are used. Any medium, no matter how slightly, changes the very spirit of the user. It is not what the medium is like that determines its influence: It is how it is used. The medium is indeed the message.

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.