Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Everyman’s McLuhan

Authors: W. Terrence Gordon, Eri Hamaji and Jacob Albert

ISBN: 978-0-9779850-1-2

For many, the term “global village” is such a part of everyday language that it’s almost cliché. And it is very likely that Marshall McLuhan, who coined the term, would find great significance in that. Indeed, such was McLuhan’s ability to decipher the interplay between technology, media and society, that before he came along, many of the concepts and catchphrases that we now take for granted had not yet been recognized, let alone so thoroughly examined. In fact, McLuhan’s contributions were so influential that Wired magazine, years after his death in 1980, named him their patron saint.

But however well-known McLuhan is to the intelligentsia, most people would not be able to recognize his name. It is therefore refreshing to have come across the book titled Everyman’s McLuhan, by co-authors W. Terrence Gordon, Eri Hamaji and Jacob Albert, which presents McLuhan’s work in an approachable, creative manner. Though not exactly a light read, the book does parse many of McLuhan’s concepts into digestible bits that the average reader can understand. Even better, the book is lavishly illustrated, which lends visual impact to the ideas and concepts that are conveyed.

For example, in one portion of the book the authors discuss McLuhan’s The Mechanical Bride, in which he examines a seemingly benign form of entertainment, the comic strip. According to the authors of Everyman’s McLuhan, “McLuhan alternately condemns and praises the world of comics, but his purpose is always to create awareness of their bias and the values they perpetuate… McLuhan is thoroughly irritated by Blondie in the Mechanical Bride, because the strip is pure formula and cliché… Dagwood, a frustrated victim trapped in suburban life, gets little respect from his children and none from McLuhan… Dagwood’s world of repetitive and inescapable dilemma is offset by the delightful predicaments in the Dogpatch of Al Capp’s Li’l Abner. Satirical, ironic, free of the shallow sentimentality that repelled McLuhan, Capp’s strip works toward the same purpose of McLuhan himself – the development of sharpened perceptions… McLuhan made no predictions for the future of Al Capp’s strip, and unlike Blondie, Li’l Abner has not survived, confirming McLuhan’s observation that society prefers somnambulism to awareness.”

Which is all thought-provoking enough, but the manner in which that last phrase is presented is even more arresting: on one page there appears an image of a young man looking into a mirror; turn the page and there appears the phrase “society prefers somnambulism to awareness”; opposite this phrase is the same mirror, but now with an old man looking out. By pairing these two powerful messages, the authors create a depth of meaning that would not be attainable by using either writing or illustration by themselves. 

Overall, Everyman’s McLuhan is an excellent primer of McLuhan’s life and body of work. Full of wisdom and sage observations made by a man who many regard as one of the greatest thinkers of our time, Everyman’s McLuhan should be required reading for all those interested in media and its effects on both the individual and society.

The reviewer does have one slight criticism about the title, however. Perhaps ironically for a book about the man who coined the term “The medium is the message”, a few of the full-page illustrations are distractingly misaligned due to the binding process. Thus, the medium distorts the message. And though the creators of the book might feel differently, no doubt this distortion would have amused McLuhan himself.

Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Everyman’s McLuhan

The above review was contributed by: Jim Curtiss: Jim is a cultural sojourner who makes his living as a freelance editor, writer, actor, and teacher. Much of his work deals with the challenges and glories of the expatriate lifestyle. Jim and his wife currently live in Seville, Spain. To read more of Jim's Reviews CLICK HERE

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