Simulation and Image in the Digitalized World
Mun Cho Kim · Social Integration Research · 2020
The world of image is transforming dramatically with the development of simulation technology. Simulation was considered a synonym for imitation of objects or phenomena for long, and this idea continued into the modern industrial period, where imitation could be quickly and accurately replicated by machine power. However, as we enter the digital age, images are moving to a new phase. This paper seeks to (1) trace the genealogy of simulation from analog to digital stage. (2) detect its unique capabilities, (3) overview the general traits and sociocultural effects of digital imitation, (4) investigate the effect of digital simulation upon the deep mental sphere of an individual and (5) discuss the displacement of image in the digital era. The imitation of the digital age is not just reproducing imitation, but transforming our lives into a state of excitement and vitality by exerting the effect of “absent presentation” that gives rise to a virtual world looking more realistic than our real world. Owing to the change, there are signs that the reality principle, the leading behavioral principle of the modern industrial society, will be replaced by the fantasy principle in the desire system deeply located in our spiritual world. As a result, it is likely that the image will lead (1) to an invisible form losing visibility, (2) to an amorphous state not holding a uniform framework, (3) to an illusion that does not guarantee substance, and (4) to the state of nought where nothing can be identifiable whatsoever. such displacement of Image in the digital era, that eradicates the inherent attributes of the image of visuality, figuration, reality, and presence, may be a sign of image suicide, saying, “This is no longer an image.” This catastrophic situation can be recovered only by an audacious effort to recreate images with the power of “disruptive imagination,” the combination of the contradictory but complemental powers to deform and reform conventional images.