The Philosophy of Jean Baudrillard: A Counter-Hegemonic Tool for Deconstructing Male and Female Archetypes in (Post-) Modern Consumer Republics?

Abstract

As the title of this chapter unequivocally implies, this present investigation explores how the provocative theories of Jean Baudrillard could be used as a starting point for conceiving a more humane form of late capitalism. Specifically, Baudrillard’s deconstruction of male and female archetypes that are grounded in hyperreality underscores the “toxic” repercussions of promoting chimerical images of the ideal man and woman that have never existed anywhere with the exception of a digital screen. Pushing back against the philosopher’s claim that all types of resistance are now futile in a symbolic universe epitomized by the advent of “integral reality” (the final stage of simulation), this reflection illustrates that the system is capable of evolving in a more positive direction by promulgating more inclusive and less reductionistic forms of identity.