Benjamin (1969), "Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction"

1. Photography and film are different from paintings in that they lack an "aura."

Benjamin (1969) argued that art forms rooted in mechanical reproduction technologies were inherently different from what he identifies as traditional art forms. A major difference is what Benjamin (1969) calls the "aura." The aura is a source of authority located in the painting that comes from a sense of authenticity. While a painting contains this aura, film and photography cannot, primarily because they represent an image of an image rather than a work of originality.

2. The loss of the aura moves the object away from ritual. The object is then based in politics.

The loss of the aura in a culture of mechanical reproduction is not necessarily negative. Benjamin (1969) seems unsure of the final impact of the loss of the aura. He is clear, though, that reproduction of art has the potential to create more egalitarian distribution of knowledge and the pleasure of consuming art.