Difference between revisions of "Flaneuring"

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===Definition===
 
===Definition===
A flâneur is thus a person who walks the city in order to experience it. Because of the term's usage and theorization by Charles Baudelaire and numerous thinkers in economic, cultural, literary and historical fields, the idea of the flâneur has accumulated significant meaning as a referent for understanding urban phenomena and modernity.  The term flâneur comes from the French verb flâner, which means "to stroll".<ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaneur</ref>
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A flâneur is thus a person who walks the city in order to experience it. Because of the term's usage and theorization by Charles Baudelaire and numerous thinkers in economic, cultural, literary and historical fields, the idea of the flâneur has accumulated significant meaning as a referent for understanding urban phenomena and modernity.  The term flâneur comes from the French verb flâner, which means "to stroll".<ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaneur</ref> On the web, flaneuring is surfing the web with no specific goal in mind. Wondering from Wikipedia article to Wikipedia article at one's intellectual whim is an excellent example of flaneuring on the internet, as well as browsing one's RSS feed or meandering through aggregated content sites, such as Digg.com or StumbleUpon.com. The term captures a certain beauty to wondering for the mere sake of intellectual, social, or aesthetic pleasure, although there are dangers to this type of activity as well. Aimlessly wondering on the internet can become a digital black hole, which one awakes from to find that it is 3am and nothing has been accomplished.  
 
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===Flaneuring on the Web===
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Wikipedia is an example of flaneuring on the web. Setting out with no set end or intentions, or starting at one point and meandering for a while in an interesting territory.  
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==References==
 
==References==

Revision as of 23:42, 17 June 2011

Definition

A flâneur is thus a person who walks the city in order to experience it. Because of the term's usage and theorization by Charles Baudelaire and numerous thinkers in economic, cultural, literary and historical fields, the idea of the flâneur has accumulated significant meaning as a referent for understanding urban phenomena and modernity. The term flâneur comes from the French verb flâner, which means "to stroll".[1] On the web, flaneuring is surfing the web with no specific goal in mind. Wondering from Wikipedia article to Wikipedia article at one's intellectual whim is an excellent example of flaneuring on the internet, as well as browsing one's RSS feed or meandering through aggregated content sites, such as Digg.com or StumbleUpon.com. The term captures a certain beauty to wondering for the mere sake of intellectual, social, or aesthetic pleasure, although there are dangers to this type of activity as well. Aimlessly wondering on the internet can become a digital black hole, which one awakes from to find that it is 3am and nothing has been accomplished.

References

  1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaneur