Marshall McLuhan’s Theory of Attention: How to Become a Psychonaut

In light of surging cross-disciplinary interest in rethinking the conceptions of attention and attention economy, this article conducts an archeology of Marshall McLuhan’s concepts in order to construct a theory of attention implicit in his media paradigm. McLuhan’s most attentional concepts are explained (such as figure/ground and cliché/archetype) and synthesized into an integrated account of his idea of attention, which I call “eco-formed attention.” It contrasts with reigning individualist and collectivist theories of attention by being constitutive, modal, dialectical, environmental, and negative-inclusive. I argue that McLuhan’s fundamental problematic of attention—concepts mismatching percepts—is solved by using eco-formed attention to become a “media psychonaut.” Four procedures are explained to illustrate psychonautic interventions in eco-formed attention. This project is useful for media-ecological analyses, creative re-engagement with media, and reforming attention within future technological changes. The article concludes by linking to several agendas in media ecology and across the humanities.

Duke Scholars

Author David Benjamin Landes Thompson Writing Program