1981
  1. Home
  2. A-Z Publications
  3. Journal of Urban Cultural Studies
  4. Volume 9, Issue 1
  5. Article
Volume 9, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 2050-9790
  • E-ISSN: 2050-9804

Abstract

While the concept of transparency generally has positive connotations, as it suggests an attempt at honesty and the eradication of corruption, Ray Loriga explores its darker side in his 2017 novel . In his novel, a transparent domed city with buildings constructed entirely of glass is intended to be a utopian refuge in a country plagued by war and scarcity of resources; however, this self-sufficient city is hardly ideal, as transparency encourages citizens to constantly watch one another, engage in self-monitoring and suppress individuality. An analysis of the transparent structures in Ray Loriga’s novel facilitates a discussion about what transparency means on the internet, especially social media, and ways that utopian aspirations of transparency may sometimes have unintended consequences. This analysis is also informed by a survey of metaphorical appropriations of transparency in the cultural imaginary, with more of an emphasis on urban architecture and literature.

© 2022 Intellect Ltd
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/jucs_00046_1
2022-06-01
2023-06-05
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Agger, Ben. ( 2012), Oversharing: Presentations of Self in the Internet Age, New York:: Routledge;.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Alejandre, Ana. ( 2018;), ‘ Lo intemporal y lo inhóspito: Sobre Rendición, de Ray Loriga. ’, República de las letras, 14 April, https://republicadelasletras.acescritores.com/2018/04/14/lo-intemporal-y-lo-inhospito-sobre-rendicion-de-ray-loriga/. Accessed 16 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Allison, Kimberley, and Bussey, Kay. ( 2020;), ‘ Communal quirks and circlejerks: A taxonomy of processes contributing to insularity in online communities. ’, Proceedings of the Fourteenth International Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence Conference on Web and Social Media, Atlanta, GA, 8–11 June, https://ojs.aaai.org/index.php/ICWSM/article/view/7275. Accessed 27 May 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Alonso, Andoni, and Martorell Campos, Francisco. ( 2018;), ‘ La transparencia, lo abierto y su política. ’, Política y Sociedad, 55:2, pp. 597–614.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Arcosanti ( 2021;), ‘ What is an arcology?. ’, https://arcosanti.org/project/arcology/. Accessed 2 January 2021.
  6. Atwood, Margaret. ( 1985), The Handmaid’s Tale, Toronto:: McClelland and Stewart;.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. BBC News ( 2013;), ‘ Barack Obama defends US surveillance tactics. ’, 8 June, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-22820711. Accessed 24 May 2021.
  8. Beaujour, Elizabeth Klosty. ( 1983;), ‘ Architectural discourse and early Soviet literature. ’, Journal of the History of Ideas, 44:3, pp. 477–95.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Beaujour, Elizabeth Klosty. ( 1988;), ‘ Zamyatin’s We and modernist architecture. ’, The Russian Review, 47:1, pp. 49–60.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Benton, Joshua. ( 2019;), ‘ Why do some people avoid news?. ’, Nieman Lab, 17 June, https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/06/why-do-some-people-avoid-news-because-they-dont-trust-us-or-because-they-dont-think-we-add-value-to-their-lives/. Accessed 2 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Berlant, Lauren. ( 2008), The Female Complaint: The Unfinished Business of Sentimentality in American Culture, Durham, NC:: Duke University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Bernate, Julian. ( 2014;), ‘ Pabellón de cristal. ’, Historia de la arquitectura moderna, 25 February, http://unalhistoria3.blogspot.com/2014/02/pabellon-de-cristal-bruno-taut.html. Accessed 31 December 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Bianchini, Riccardo. ( 2018;), ‘ The glass house. ’, In Exhibit, 26 July, www.inexhibit.com/mymuseum/the-glass-house-philip-johnson-new-canaan-connecticut/?cn-reloaded=1. Accessed 31 December 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Brandeis, Louis D.. ( 1914), Other People’s Money: And How the Bankers Use It, New York:: Frederick A. Stokes;.
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Bromwich, Jonah Engel. ( 2020;), ‘ Cancel culture, part 1: Where it came from. ’, The Daily, 10 August, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736?i=1000487664820. Accessed 11 June 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  16. Brownell, Blaine. ( 2016;), ‘ Getting inside Philip Johnson’s head at the Glass House. ’, Architect Magazine, 27 July, https://www.architectmagazine.com/technology/getting-inside-philip-johnsons-head-at-the-glass-house_o. Accessed 31 December 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Burgos, Edixela, and Hernández Díaz, Gustavo. ( 2021;), ‘ La cultura de la cancelación. ’, Comunicación, 193, pp. 143–55, https://comunicacion.gumilla.org/2021/06/19/la-cultura-de-la-cancelacion-autoritarismo-de-las-comunidades-de-usuario/. Accessed 22 June 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Carmichael, Flora,, Coleman, Alistair,, Etutu, Jaice,, Goodman, Jack,, Sardarizadeh, Shayan,, Spring, Marianna,, Robinson, Olga, and Strick, Ben. ( 2020;), ‘ George Floyd protests: Misleading footage and conspiracy theories spread online. ’, BBC News, 2 June, https://www.bbc.com/news/52877751. Accessed 17 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Díaz de Quijano, Fernando. ( 2017;), ‘ Ray Loriga: “Nuestra sociedad ya es distópica”. ’, El Cultural, 25 May, https://elcultural.com/ray-loriga-nuestra-sociedad-ya-es-distopica. Accessed 16 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Eggers, Dave. ( 2013), The Circle: A Novel, New York:: Alfred Knopf;.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Fernández Muerza, Alex. ( 2011;), ‘ Arcología, arquitectura ecológica futurista. ’, Consumer.es, 27 January, https://www.consumer.es/medio-ambiente/arcologia-arquitectura-ecologica-futurista.html. Accessed 2 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Foucault, Michel. ( [1975] 1995), Discipline and Punish (trans. A. Sheridan), New York:: Vintage;.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Gomel, Elana, and Weninger, Stephen A.. ( 2004;), ‘ Romancing the crystal: Utopias of transparency and dreams of pain. ’, Utopian Studies, 15:2, pp. 65–91.
     [Google Scholar]
  24. González del Pozo, Jorge. ( 2019;), ‘ Distopías colectivas, individuos inadaptados en la alegoría de una sociedad próxima que presenta Rendición de Ray Loriga. ’, Polifonía, 8:1, pp. 37–55.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. Griffioen, Roel. ( 2011;), ‘ From glass to one-way glass. ’, Open! Platform for Art, Culture & the Public Domain, 18 November, https://onlineopen.org/from-glass-to-one-way-glass. Accessed 19 June 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  26. Hampton, Keith,, Rainie, Lee,, Lu, Weixu,, Dwyer, Maria,, Shin, Inyoung, and Purcell, Kristen. ( 2014;), ‘ Social media and the “spiral of silence”. ’, Pew Research Center, 26 August, https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2014/08/26/social-media-and-the-spiral-of-silence/. Accessed 2 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  27. Han, Byung-Chul. ( 2015), The Transparency Society (trans. E. Butler), Stanford:: Stanford UP;.
     [Google Scholar]
  28. Han, Byung-Chul. ( 2017), In the Swarm (trans. E. Butler), Cambridge, MA:: MIT Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  29. Hutchings, Williams. ( 1981–82;), ‘ Structure and design in a Soviet dystopia: H. G. Wells, Constructivism, and Yevgeny Zamyatin’s We. ’, Journal of Modern Literature, 9:1, pp. 81–102.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. Huxley, Aldous. ( [1932] 2017), Brave New World, New York:: Harper;.
     [Google Scholar]
  31. Jacoby, James. ( 2018), The Facebook Dilemma, The Transparency Project, USA:: Frontline and Public Broadcasting Service;.
     [Google Scholar]
  32. Kennedy, Jenny. ( 2018;), ‘ Oversharing is the norm. ’, in A. S Dobson,, B. Robards, and N. Carah. (eds), Digital Intimate Publics and Social Media, Cham:: Palgrave Macmillan;, pp. 265–80.
     [Google Scholar]
  33. Kepes, Gyorgy. ( [1944] 2020), Language of Vision, Chicago, IL:: Barakaldo Books;.
     [Google Scholar]
  34. Kurz Muñoz, Juan Alberto. ( 1990;), ‘ El monumento a la III Internacional de Vladimir Tatlin. ’, Ars longa: Cuadernos de arte, 1, pp. 65–74.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. Loriga, Ray. ( 1992), Lo peor de todo, Madrid:: Editorial Debate;.
     [Google Scholar]
  36. Loriga, Ray. ( 1993), Héroes, Barcelona:: Plaza & Janés;.
     [Google Scholar]
  37. Loriga, Ray. ( 1995), Caídos del cielo, Barcelona:: Plaza & Janés;.
     [Google Scholar]
  38. Loriga, Ray. ( 1999), Tokio ya no nos quiere, Barcelona:: Plaza Janés;.
     [Google Scholar]
  39. Loriga, Ray. ( 2014), Za za: emperador de Ibiza, Barcelona:: Editorial Alfaguara;.
     [Google Scholar]
  40. Loriga, Ray. ( 2017), Rendición, Barcelona:: Editorial Alfaguara;.
     [Google Scholar]
  41. Loriga, Ray. ( 2020), Surrender (trans. C. de Robertis), Boston, MA:: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt;.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Mandujano Tovar, Rocío. ( 2017;), ‘ Ray Loriga, Premio Alfaguara de Novela 2017. ’, Televisa, 5 April, https://noticieros.televisa.com/ultimas-noticias/ray-loriga-premio-alfaguara-novela-2017/. Accessed 19 June 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  43. McCarthy, Cormac. ( [2006] 2017), The Road, New York:: Alfred A. Knopf;.
     [Google Scholar]
  44. Menéndez Salmón, Ricardo. ( 2016), El sistema, Barcelona:: Seix Barral;.
     [Google Scholar]
  45. Olmet, Luis Antón del. ( [1912] 2014), La verdad en la ilusión, Jaén:: Ginger Ape;.
     [Google Scholar]
  46. Palardy, Diana. ( 2018), The Dystopian Imagination in Contemporary Spanish Literature and Film, Cham:: Palgrave Macmillan;.
     [Google Scholar]
  47. ‘panopticon’ ( n.d.), Encyclopædia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/technology/panopticon. Accessed 2 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  48. Park, Chang Sup. ( 2019;), ‘ Does too much news on social media discourage news seeking?. ’, Social Media + Society, 5:3, https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305119872956. Accessed 27 May 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  49. Peris Blanes, Jaume. ( 2019;), ‘ Imaginación distópica y visibilidad urbana en Rendición y Todo era oscuro bajo el cielo iluminado. ’, in E. Martínez. (ed.), Señales mutuas. Estudios transatlánticos de literatura española y mexicana hoy, Madrid:: Iberoamericana;, pp. 15–32.
     [Google Scholar]
  50. Poniatowska, Elena. ( 2017;), ‘ Rendición, una novela en el límite del mundo. ’, El País, 7 July, https://elpais.com/cultura/2017/07/07/babelia/1499419929_673144.html. Accessed 16 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  51. Rendueles, César. ( 2015), Sociofobia, Madrid:: Capitán Swing;.
     [Google Scholar]
  52. Ruibal, José. ( [1968] 1991), El hombre y la mosca, Madrid:: Colección la avispa;.
     [Google Scholar]
  53. Silverman, David. ( 2007), The Simpsons Movie, USA:: Twentieth Century Fox;.
     [Google Scholar]
  54. Torres, Laura G.. ( 2017;), ‘ Ray Loriga: “Las redes sociales mejoran la pesadilla de Orwell: somos delatores de nosotros mismos”. ’, RTVE, 25 May, https://www.rtve.es/noticias/20170525/ray-loriga-redes-sociales-mejoran-pesadilla-orwell-somos-delatores-nosotros-mismos/1553420.shtml. Accessed 16 January 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  55. Under the Dome ( 2013–15, USA:: Amblin Television;).
     [Google Scholar]
  56. Verhoeven, Paul. ( 1990), Total Recall, USA:: Carolco Pictures;.
     [Google Scholar]
  57. Wells, H. G.. ( [1923] 1982), Men Like Gods, Harmondsworth:: Penguin;.
     [Google Scholar]
  58. Zamyatin, Yevgeny. ( [1924] 1972), We (trans. M. Ginsburg), New York:: Avon Books;.
     [Google Scholar]
  59. Zunini, Patricio. ( 2017;), ‘ Ray Loirga: “Las redes sociales han cambiado nuestros patrones de conducta y socialización”. ’, Infobae, 1 June, https://www.infobae.com/grandes-libros/2017/07/01/ray-loriga-las-redes-sociales-han-cambiado-nuestros-patrones-de-conducta-y-socializacion/. Accessed 27 May 2021.
     [Google Scholar]
  60. Palardy, Diana Q.. ( 2022;), ‘ The sinister side of transparency in architecture and social media in Ray Loriga’s Rendición (Surrender) (2017). ’, Journal of Urban Cultural Studies, 9:1, pp. 3–20, https://doi.org/10.1386/jucs_00046_1
     [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1386/jucs_00046_1
Loading
  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): dystopia; glass; Ray Loriga; Rendición; social media; transparency; transparent architecture; utopia

Most Cited Most Cited RSS feed

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error