Rhetorical Constructions of Technology within Film and Television: Savior or Enemy?

This two-part thesis explores rhetorically significant depictions of technology in television and film. First, this essay undertakes an analysis of the Netflix series Black Mirror and specifically its third season episode titled “San Junipero.” More specifically, the chapter argues that “San Junipero” urges viewers to understand and regard ‘technology-as-savior.’ “San Junipero” accomplishes this by tapping into the symbolic-affective dimensions and themes of communal nostalgia, a utopian impulse, and mediated heaven. The chapter concludes by briefly reflecting on what is at stake in rhetoric that treats technology in religious terms. The following chapter explores cinematic affect’s role in the depiction of technology and corporate culture. As a “one-person show,” the 2010 film Buried mobilizes a uniquely multi-layered affect of fear/isolation/claustrophobia in order to “equip” viewers to deal with the social anxieties of corporate culture and technology. This analysis further illustrates the possibility of favoring affect over symbols in rhetorical texts; affect can be essential in Burke’s conception of “equipment for living” when texts move audiences on a visceral level. Both texts, “San Junipero” and Buried, invite audiences to view technology in specific and strikingly diverse ways. This thesis illustrates, therefore, how media can sway public perception and discourse surrounding technology.