Realism is not a matter of any fidelity to an empirical reality, but of the discursive conventions by which and for which a sense of reality is constructed.
Interpretation
Realism focuses on how reality is constructed through language and social discourse rather than just objective observation.
In this quote, John Fiske emphasizes that realism goes beyond mere representation of an empirical reality. Instead, it is shaped by the conventions of discourse that influence our understanding and perception of what is considered real. This perspective suggests that our grasp of reality is heavily influenced by cultural and social frameworks rather than just the physical world that we observe.
In practice
In a discussion about art and its representation of reality, this quote can illustrate how artworks are not just portrayals but interpretations shaped by societal norms.
There was no doubt now in Ender's mind. There was no help for him. Whatever he faced, now and forever, no one would save him from it. Peter might be scum, but Peter had been right, always right; the power to cause pain is the only power that matters, the power to kill and destroy, because if you can't kill then you are always subject to those who can, and nothing and no one will ever save you.
I believe that a guarantee of public access to government information is indispensable in the long run for any democratic society.... if officials make public only what they want citizens to know, then publicity becomes a sham and accountability meaningless.
I'm in a period of growth and expansion. I'm taking long, hard looks at the world and what's happening in it, analyzing and thinking. I'm trying to become acquainted with the universe - with the part of it I occupy - and trying to settle, for myself, what my relationship with it is.
This city is dying of rabies. Is the best I can do to wipe random flecks of foam from its lips?
The splendors of the firmament of time May be eclipsed, but are extinguished not; Like stars to their appointed height they climb And death is a low mist which cannot blot The brightness it may veil.
Our life is not given to us like an opera libretto, in which all is written down; but it means going, walking, doing, searching, seeing.... We must enter into the adventure of the quest for meeting God; we must let God search and encounter us.
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