Reantasy

Reality is something that, as Reality Hunger cleverly explains, we never cease to crave. However, we never actually stop and ask ourselves what "reality" actually means. Sure, according to Dictionary.com it is "the state or quality of being real, "resemblance to what is real,"or "a real thing or fact."But then, what is "real"? Dictionary.com defines it as "true." But once more, what does this actually mean? And the questions go on and on.

There is actually a blurry line (if there even is one) between reality and fantasy. Shields is able to get this idea through to his audience by titling Chapter G "Blur."It is in this section that he says "Try to make it real - compared to what?" (222) With this aphorism he is able to basically summarize the entire chapter: is anything actually completely real? In fact, I agree with him: nothing is.

We all see things and events with different points of view. When we describe these, our retellings will be "real" to us, but maybe fictitious to others. For example, when fights occur between two people, both stories usually don't match. It's not that they're lying necessarily. It's more likely that they're each telling the events from their own point of view, their own reality. What might have been a harsh response to one person, could have been an ordinary comment to the other. This is where the blur between reality and fantasy appears.

In addition, there's also the common use of omission. By doing so, people aren't lying, they are simply skipping certain details. But then, it's not the absolute truth either, right? Thus, reality and fiction are blurred once again.

Yet, nowadays, as Shields points out, people love reality. However, he puts it like this: "Our culture is obsessed with real events because we experience hardly any." (241) I agree: We are so used to our daily lives that they cease to be real to us and instead become monotonous. As a result, we become obsessed with anything that reflects reality. This is where the media usually comes in.

People love the news and reality shows because it gives them a glimpse of what "the real life" is like. The daily news tells real, shocking stories, and that's one of the reasons why a lot of people enjoy it every day. There's also reality shows, which are actually pretty much lies. Produces film their stars (many times giving them orders on what to do or say) and afterwards they even trim out essential details, recurring to the art of omission.

"And as you're studying that reality (judiciously as you will), we'll act again, creating other realities, which you can study, too, and that's how things will sort out,"(253) says Shields in Chapter I. It is absolutely true. Now everything changes so quickly, that what could previously be considered reality ceases being so. It's all the puzzle of "reality," a word created by man that still means nothing.