Game

I like the associations drawn between popular psychology and the rise of the video game. Examples includes people continually wanting to recall, augment, or control their world. A lot of stresses could potentially be put on a youth that is raised with the video game objective-success mentality. One could develop a mind set that if one does not succeed at a given objective, it's game over. This could lead to depression or suicidal tenancies when one does not meet the expectations or goals set for them. They could be led to believe that if they don't complete everything they should or do it well enough, everything is a total loss and become helpless. In reality concepts of success are subjective, not delivered in black and white, and the objectives one believes are leading them there may not be the ones that will. One may be right in considering it a success to not rescue the princess but instead to lay in the sun on level one and count the blossoms. Who's to say they're wrong?

The Gun Camera

I have always been fascinated in the cultural associations with the camera and the firearm. Whether it’s the belief that a camera can usurp ones soul or the use of a camera gun apparatuses for target practice in WWII war birds, the two mechanisms seem to have an unusual set of relationships. I want to explore the ways in which people interact with and react to the use of cameras and firearms. I am particularly curious about both objects as a symbol of power and their implications in the public domain.
I believe that the cultural atmosphere is ripe for this investigation because of the recent passage of the concealed carry law allowing citizens to conceal firearms on their person and requiring businesses to post about forbidding weapons. It is interesting to consider where weapons are and are not allowed as compared to where cameras are and are not allowed. I want to probe the cultural consciousness and ask questions about the reasons behind these boundaries or lack-there-of for both machines.