The Authority of the Audience

As “man is the measure of all things”, the loci of control or perspective is that of the viewer or audience. Humanity’s history is shaped from the perspective of ‘human’, and throughout time from Kings to slaves we’ve been defining and redefining the ‘construct’ of what it means to be human. The definition of human. The word ‘Human’.

As such, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and therein lies perceived and subjective value.

When an Author writes work, they create a written piece.

When the audience sees the written piece, they receive the photons of light into their eyes and reconstruct the image of the ideas in their mind. (For those with aphantasia, they may reconstruct it in another way such as feelings or words). In this reconstruction, the audience is reinterpreting and interpreting the work. The audience cross references all the words and ideas in a mental complex of their mind to connect dots and fragmented pieces of reference based on relevance or some other hierarchy of meaning.

(A hierarchy of meaning, means that the meaning of a word is shaped by it’s context and association. When I say the word ‘table’, you might think the meaning of a ‘four legged table’ first before a ‘three legged table’ or a ‘box that functions as a table’. Essentially the words impose a meaning that is close to what you ‘think’ is being said)

The internalization and cross-trans-derivational search. You know, looking for things across references to derive meaning or opinions or adages and such.

In this way, The audience becomes the second author.

The audience self-authors the work into their own conceptions and perceptions, filtered through their lenses of perception and tastes and other hypostases of their being. Their own experiences, values, and beliefs. When the audience judges or critiques, they do so from their own subjective authority to author their own opinion on the simulated simulacra of the prime or initial event.

Essentially the audience authors a ‘copy’ of the work in their mind, and it can be more or less than the actual original work itself. Then the audience crafts their ‘opinion’ or ‘critique’ as their own work itself.

(For instance, if the author writes that the drapes are blue, they could mean that the drapes are blue. Yet some audiences will critique and reinterpret it meaning that the blue is symbolic of sadness and depression as some meta-level critique on foreshadowing sadness. Miscommunication is not a bad thing, but it does happen – and misinterpretation could be construed as miscommunication)

When you see a movie, you judge it, and you create your own interpretation of the movie in your head.

You might have seen the movie, but you didn’t see all the tiny details all in one showing. With even repeat showings, you see different things and focus on different things. If someone tells you where to look, or a spoiler, you might be super focused on a tiny bit and miss out on the rest. Trying to see the Forest but only focusing on a single tree -type of view.

Thus with each interpretation, you are authoring your new interpretation.

If you watch a movie with someone else, they might have a different opinion or understanding. Movies where you don’t interact with the people you are with, is akin to watching a single-player experience and then reconciling and retelling the movie after the experience.

There’s of course different dynamics for people who watch movies with their friends that are different from watching movies alone or with a dating relationship.

As mentioned earlier

Sometimes someone’s interpretation of the work can exceed the work itself, and when these people can also channel their interpretation in other works, they become inspired to skillfully manipulate and manifest other ideas in their craft. Like someone being inspired or looking to others as role models.

The point is, we can be inspired by works that we author in our heads, and then channel that inspiration into new works, new plays, writings, art, video games, movies, etc.

Reality is often a creative co-collaboration with the entire universe (to include other people and their realities) as we bounce back and forth ideas through time and space. Seeing who does it better or differently and adding unique flavors and layers of interpretation and nuance.

Thus, the audience has an authority over their own self-stewardship, and they have the ability to author their own works based on the works they’ve co-authored in their minds, from the works that others have authored.

In terms of public identities

People read and hear all sorts of critiques or shows or interpretations of celebrities and political pundits. People feel strong support or hate towards people they’ve never met personally and are living in their own constructed reality towards a person, or nation, or people, or thing, or even idea.

This is by what I mean in which we are authoring our own construct and idea of our reality and how we perceive things. The audience has the authority in their own head to determine what is good, bad, or otherwise to themself for themself. Discernment is in the eye of the beholder.

It’s wild but it happens, people have all sorts of opinions on food and drinks they’ve never had, or even people they’ve never met. Reputation proceeds these things or people beyond direct experience. As such, we as the audience or interpreters create or author our own works and live life making derivative works influenced by the things we experienced.

Epilogue

TLDR:

1. Audience creates a construct of what they viewed or read or experienced. They author their own reality to create a construct based on what they saw.
2. And the audience also makes works or words or opinions and thoughts influenced by their experience. Thus they have the author to create fandoms or anti-fandoms and even non relevant works inspired by the base experience.
3. So the Audience has two forms of Authority. One for their own reality. Another authority for how they interact and engage with life afterwards.

A relevant term to understand that works with this idea of the authority of the audience, is ‘audience capture’, in which the audience influences the work of the artist or creator or author. The author is then shaped by the audience like a carrot and a stick method. A sort of feedback loop with all things created.

I was re-reading a short 8 page or so essay of ‘death of the author’ by Roland Barthes, and was reminded of how the subjective interpretation of the works creates a new meaning. In this way, I figure the ‘new meaning’ to also be a new authored work or interpretation. Thus I wanted to paint the idea that the subjective viewer also ‘creates’ or ‘constructs’ a reality based on the work they perceive.

That the Audience is also an author in another way.

Do you agree? Disagree? Is your interpretation your own authored and authentic idea personal and subjective to your own? Does that mean your opinion is it’s own original work? Did you see what I did there? I made it so you agree with me in a very snarky way catch-22 style.

Words Mean Things