Mass reproduction decays the aura by collectivizing distracted consumption

Evidence

The contemporary development of the mass reproduction of art by mechanical means reaching its climax in cinema, however, causes the aura to decay, both by destroying the uniqueness of images and by altering their mode of consumption - the reception of the work of art is no longer a matter of individual absorption in the image, but - above all in the film theatre — is ‘consummated by a collectivity in a state of distraction’. — Alex Callinicos, Against Postmodernism, 117

Categorization

• DEFINE: Sets out Benjamin’s causal mechanism on how mechanical reproduction undermines aura.