Empire Of Illusion By Chris Hedges Analysis

Do you think the most essential skill in political theater is Artifice? You’re probably wondering what the word ‘artifice’ means correct? It means by having a clever trick that you use on someone that is lower than you; power wise. Political Leaders deal with money & have to make deals with others in order to gain more for themselves & to the ones that are higher than them. In order to make those kinds of deals, artifice has to be used. In any way they want to; as long as business is rolling along. Artifice shouldn’t be used in political theater for lots of reasons, but it has its reasons. “Those who have not mastered the art of entertainment, who fail to create a narrative or do not have one fashioned for them by their handlers, are ignored.“

In the passage of “Empire of Illusion” by Chris Hedges, he discusses how political leaders use artifice with citizens.

Artifice is a big deal in the political theater. It has been used all the time and not just in business. A political leader has one job; attract others and do business. It is what they do and what they are made for. “Political leaders, who use the tools of mass propaganda to create a sense of faux intimacy with citizens, no longer need to be competent, sincere, or honest.” Mass propaganda continues to be used on a daily base throughout the world. Chris Hedges use the term “artifice” to make it seem a bit more interesting and bigger. Meaning, he used that word because not everyone smart enough like myself could know what the word means and would make us question ourselves what it means. He makes a bold statement towards political leaders using artifice when making deals. There are lots of ways of how leaders communicate with citizens, but is there artifice? Is there artifice in order to get what you want from the

other?
Chris Hedges mentions that the ones, political leaders, who create a more personal narrative towards the citizen succeed the most. They pass the ones who failed at what they do or what they are supposed to do. “The consistency and emotional appeal of the story are paramount.” That goes to the ones who aren’t good at what is called ARTIFICE. When you are working with someone during business, it is your job to convince the citizen into marketing or joining in with them. It is your job to tell a story about whatever you are dealing with/about and it is your job to use as much as artifice as you can to get the citizen to barge. When you are telling a story, Chris Hedges says explains how there are different types of narratives; reality, emotional or consistency and creativity. Having the reality of a narrative has nothing to do with what you want from the other person. Having an emotional narrative doesn’t do any good. Having a fake narrative does some real good for you. You succeed the most than the others and win the most too. To the ones who don’t achieve that kind, they are called the “unreal” as Chris Hedges mentioned. So what is it going to be readers? Are you going to deny about how bad or wrong artifice is used in the real world?
In beloved conclusion, Chris Hedges made direct points of Artifice. The ones who succeed in deception are the best. The ones who don’t strive for that, become the unreal as it was mentioned earlier. It is a clever trick someone uses against someone to capture their attention and lure them in without knowing what the bad side is. In the end, we all have different opinions towards political leaders using artifice right? There is no right or wrong answer to that to be honest.