Blog Post #2 - Mikayla Sutcliffe
In Pontypool, Grant Mazzy’s opening monologue reflects Harold Innis' understanding of orality by emphasizing the power of speech to engage and shape a community. Innis believed speech is time-bound, existing in the present moment and fostering a direct, communal connection. Mazzy’s cryptic wordplay—where a simple announcement about a missing cat spirals into absurdity—draws listeners into a shared space of thought, turning local news into a strange, performative experience. His voice binds the town together in real-time, creating a sense of immediacy.
This contrasts with DJ Dave Mickie’s high-energy performance, discussed by Marshall McLuhan. Mickie’s rhythmic, playful style brings an almost musical quality to his speech, using energetic banter and catchphrases to pull listeners into a shared cultural experience. Both Mazzy and Mickie leverage the intimacy of radio, but while Mickie’s upbeat delivery reinforces a sense of fun and connection, Mazzy’s performance subverts expectations, using speech to disorient and question reality itself.
In both cases, speech on the radio becomes a tool of performance—whether to bind people through shared rhythm and humour, as Mickie does, or to unsettle and challenge perceptions, as Mazzy does. Both approaches highlight Innis' idea that orality has a unique, ephemeral power to shape culture and experience.
Hey Mikayla!! I love how you connect Grant Mazzy’s monologue in Pontypool to Innis’ idea of speech being time-bound and creating a communal connection. Mazzy’s cryptic wordplay draws listeners into a shared space, making local news feel strange and performative, which perfectly captures how speech shapes reality in real-time.
ReplyDeleteThe comparison with DJ Dave Mickie is spot on too! You highlight how Mickie’s playful, rhythmic style pulls people together, while Mazzy’s unsettling delivery disrupts their perception of reality. It’s such a cool contrast that shows how radio can either unite or disorient listeners. Overall, this post does a great job illustrating how speech on the radio influences emotions and shapes culture!
Hi Mikayla! Your response is perceptive and shows that you have a thorough awareness of the ways in which both Grant Mazzy and DJ Dave Mickie use radio as a performative tool to influence the experiences of listeners. You demonstrate how speech may create instantaneous, real-time communal connections through Mazzy's unnerving wordplay and Harold Innis' theories on orality. It works especially well when you compare this with DJ Dave Mickie's energetic, rhythmic delivery, which is connected to McLuhan's concepts. You draw attention to the way Mickie's lighthearted approach encourages a distinct kind of group experience that is based on enjoyment and rhythm rather than confusion, which I thought was a great connection.
ReplyDeleteOverall, great post!