The Girl From Monday

Work Title: The Girl From Monday
Medium: Film
Episode Title:
Year: 2005
Writer(s): Hal Hartley
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: No
Summary:

from imdb.com In the not-distant-future, the market has taken over everything, thanks to the marketers. The consumer is king, and those who see value outside of the marketplace are "enemies of the consumer", terrorists, and "partisan" enemies that the state must dispose of. Protagonist Jack seems to be at one with the media corporations (after all, his marketing ideas led to the institutionalization of the exchange of sex for enhanced buying power), but is he somehow involved with the feeble and pathetic resistance movement? Does he love Cecile, his colleague, or is she a pawn in his game? And what of the mysterious girl from Monday? Are immigrants from the star system "Monday" really assisting the partisans? Summary written by Martin Lewison {dr@martinlewison.com}

  • Self-Written?:
  • Source Name: IMDB
  • Source URL:
Era/Year of Portrayal: near_future
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

The near future is similiar to today's world. After the revolution, a corporation became the government. Economics govern the world and everyone is encouraged to earn as much as possible, in order to consume as much as possible.Every action a person takes earns more capitol. Nothin is done for any reason other than to raise credit ratings.

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: virtual reality, connected to the Internet
  • Description of the technology: High School students are taught entirely through virtual reality, connected to the Internet. Each student wears a large pair of goggles and interactive gloves. Wires connect everything. They are immersed in virtual reality, learning from a designed system. While they are supposedly learning, their choices and desires are recorded by marketers. Quality and vivdeness of the online world are unknown.
  • Nature of task or activity: Learning. In school.
  • Performance of the Technology: It works well for the marketers. They are able to know what people want before they want it. The students don't learn.
  • Description of creator(s): unknown specifically, although it seems that 3M, the governing corporation, invented it.
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): To learn consumer preferences.
  • Description of users of technology: High schoolers - male, female, all years. They are all anti-social and carry weapons. Schools are so violent that only convicts are "teachers". "teachers" sit in the front of the classrooom watching students as they sit in virtual reality.
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: spatial_presence
  • Description of presence experience: It seems like while the students are supposed to be learning, they are really just shopping. Whatever they re doing online is making them very antisocial and hostile. They must be given drugs in order for them to go into virtual reality. The audience can only assume that it is not that pleasent.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: yes.
  • Valence of experience: Either ambilent or unpleasant
  • Specific responses: well, they are supposed to be learning, but are not. the experience also seems to be making the students act out.
Long-term consequences:

The story seems to end negatively. The counterrevolutionaries do not win. Society continutes on, centered around consumerism.

Other:

Coder name: Amanda Scheiner
Coder email: amandags@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: Temple University