The archive reveals, or unveils an apocalypse different than the one described in the scriptures; although we conflate the term apocalypse with the end of times, it can mean very different things. Rather than times coming to an end, it births a new “uncovering”, or sheds light onto a new revelation. In this instance, the archive exhibits human nature to: categorize, label and preserve writings that may be considered of literary merit. And, through the different modes of media, wether analogical or digital, we worship and reproduce different ways of seeing. This raises the question–why do we need to classify, codify and archive media? And, how does the reproduction of power operate within the realm of different ideological systems within politics and institutions?  

Grounded in different theoretical frameworks such as Derrida’s Archive Fever and Althusser’s theory of interpellation, this project seeks to explore how the archive, wether digital or analogical, functions as systems of control and conservation. The archive will be analyzed as a product of culture and time, operating as a system that reflects the dominant ideology of the time in which it was written. 

David Foster Wallace’s This is Water serves as a framework to reconsider our perception and awareness by deconstructing the choices we make in worshipping different modes of media; the way in which we engage with it allows us to engage with the world differently than what we know–challenging our beliefs and ideas; to encourage critical thinking and awareness.