Fantasy Writers 1860

Clancy also commissioned some prints to be used as illustrations in the book, which was a common sales tactic in that era.

When the first batch of individual volumes was printed, Clancy, who remembered Dorian's previous complaint that "I almost couldn't buy your newspapers," specially kept a copy and sent it to him for his collection.

"The interpretations you all gave so far have all been from the perspectives of 'satire' and 'critique.' Indeed, this book does contain elements of social satire, and criticizing such a money-worshipping social consensus from the perspective of 'alienation' is indeed a very accurate way to interpret this work."

He paused for a moment, then said, "But what I want to say is that the book's content goes far beyond that."

"Let me ask you a question first: What exactly is that banknote?"

"Money," someone answered.

"Yes, it is money, but it cannot be cashed out or put into any financial circulation. It cannot actually be used to buy anything," Dorian continued. "This banknote is given a fundamentally contradictory function: it must be displayed to achieve a social effect, but it can never be used."

"Doesn't this just show that it's satirizing the falseness of money?" someone interjected.

"No, that's precisely the key point, and what distinguishes this work from previous money novels." Dorian shook his head. "Previous authors also had similar stories that satirized the supremacy of money, but in those stories, money was always the object of desire, the real force driving the characters' actions."

"But this banknote was never traded in any economic sense from beginning to end; it was never purchased, never cashed out, and never appreciated in value. Its only function was to be seen by others."

"To explain the beauty of this design, I must first explain a concept called symbol." Dorian looked around at everyone and found that they were all completely absorbed in his guidance. Even Roderick, who had been indignant at him just now, was listening carefully and seemed to be deep in thought.

Dorian continued, "Normally, symbols are used to indicate a certain reality, such as the gold pound as a symbol representing the value of gold. But this novel, and the real-life Samuel case, reveals that a symbol can not indicate any reality, but can simply point to another symbol."

"The gold pound itself is a symbol pointing to the value of gold, and we use it in this way in our daily lives. At this time, the gold pound is both a symbol of value and a commodity for people to use and circulate."

"The extreme case described in the book is that the face value of one million gold pounds directly erases its nature as a commodity, leaving only its pure, abstract aspect as a symbol of value."

"But it is precisely this material uselessness of the banknote that makes it omnipotent as a symbol of value. Henry's entire social status does not come from his wealth—he actually has no wealth—but from his possession of that symbol. The value of this symbol is recognized as enormous wealth in the social value system."

"If it could be cashed out, used, and given change, then it would be consumed, and would still be a symbol indicating a specific amount of value, only much larger. But it is precisely because it has been in Henry's pocket for so long that it continues to perform its symbolic function."

The conference room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Dorian paused briefly, "...at this point, it transformed from a symbol of value into a symbolic value with independent power."

"Its power no longer comes from what it can 'buy,' but from its position in the social value system. It is a symbol pointing to 'immense wealth,' and thus occupies the absolute top of the symbolic hierarchy."

"When we spend money, what are we really spending? Are we spending its material attributes? Obviously not, its material attributes are just a piece of paper. What we are really spending is its quality as a symbol of value, the quality we believe it can serve as a symbol of corresponding value."

"...The power of money comes from being 'believed' in, not from being 'used'."

Lily's pupils suddenly contracted.

"The moment a banknote is actually 'used,' its magic begins to wane; but when it is merely 'seen' but not 'touched,' it reaches the pinnacle of its magic, like an inviolable sacred object."

Next, Dorian divided the work and began to connect it with reality:

"The million pounds in the novel were at least real, but the 100 pounds in Samuel's hand were fake, yet they achieved a nearly identical effect in reality."

"The 100 gold pounds never existed, but everyone Samuel saw operated as if it did, and this collective imitation produced real wealth for Samuel."

"This means that, in addition to existence and possession, there can be a third state: display. The important thing is no longer 'what it is,' but 'what is displayed and presented.'"

Disilife seemed thoughtful.

"In Samuel's case, almost none of the victims had ever seen the 100-pound note, not even the counterfeit one; their knowledge of Samuel came entirely from their relatives and friends."

"And those relatives and friends also came to know Samuel from other relatives and friends. They were like a group of audience members who learned about Samuel through layers of retelling."

"This Samuel, as portrayed in the media, is completely different from the real Samuel. People no longer worship the wealthy or money itself, but rather the image of money that can be seen, displayed, and disseminated."

"An image can exist independently of a physical entity. It's not that territory comes first and then a map is drawn based on the territory's condition; rather, the map comes first, and then territory is acquired based on the map's condition. This is completely contrary to our common understanding, but reality has proven that such a situation can indeed occur."

"Symbols can exist independently of their indicative function on matter, acquire independent power, and influence, shape, and even determine the world in a way that resembles a landscape."

"The deeper essence of materialism is not human greed or moral depravity, but a worship of 'pure symbols' detached from material reality. It is a collective spectacle performance with visibility as its highest principle, and a religious belief that completely surrenders oneself to this system composed solely of symbols and spectacle."

Polina was completely bewildered.

"Perhaps in the future world, what matters will no longer be what you possess, but what you display; what is real will no longer matter, but what you see will matter, and the display will no longer be based on reality. Instead, reality will be the result of the display."

He closed the book: "Consensus is reality. When everyone believes this piece of paper is invaluable, it can buy the whole world. When no one believes it, it's just a piece of waste paper..."

As Dorian's words faded, the entire room fell silent.